Candidate for
Democratic Party County Central Committee; County of San Francisco; Assembly District 12

The Democratic Party is losing registration share in San Francisco. More than ever, people are registering as decline-to-state, or not registering to vote at all, because they are disillusioned with the political process.

Some would rather blame the Greens and progressives who are leaving our party, but I believe that if we want to get those voters back, then we first need to look at our own party- why are we losing these voters and how can our party address the needs of our constituents?

Rather than beat down progressive movements, we should seek to work in coalition whenever possible. But above all, we need to show that the Democratic Party still stands for something, and is willing to work to implement those ideals. Here's what I stand for, and some of what I've done to make those ideals a reality:

-Environmental Protection

I twice worked as a Field Manager for CalPIRG, and I am a veteran of two public power campaigns in San Francisco. With cancer clusters and skyrocketing rates of asthma in communities of color, we need to make sure that PG&E's polluting power plants are closed down and replaced with cleaner alternatives.

-Living Wages, fair treatment for workers

I worked to defeat Prop. 226 in 1998, the anti-union so-called "paycheck protection act," and was a strong supporter of the initiative that raised the San Francisco minimum wage to $8.50/hour.

-Universal Healthcare

As a health care provider, and a PAC Keyperson Coordinator for the California Optometric Association, I have always been a strong advocate of single-payer healthcare. I strongly support SB 921 for universal healthcare, and have advocated on behalf of more funding for healthcare to our state representatives.

-Civil Liberties

I was a leading organizer in last year's successful campaign to bring more accountability and civilian oversight to the police department. As a board member of the San Francisco Young Democrats, I led the club in taking a position opposing the anti-rave bill in the California State Legislature. I completely support efforts by city government to resist the PATRIOT Act and efforts to achieve full rights for the LGBT community, including marriage.

-Electoral Reform

A healthy democracy cannot be controlled by special interests. That is why I worked to qualify a 1996 ballot initiative for campaign finance reform, support district elections in San Francisco, and worked to democratize our electoral process through reforms such as Instant Runoff Voting.

-Pursuing Peace

Even on a local level, there is much that can be done to show the world community that they are not alone in opposing President Bush's wars of aggression. I have been an anti-war activist against both Gulf Wars.

-Building the party by promoting candidates with real Democratic values

I volunteered on Senator Boxer's last re-election campaign and will make her re-election a priority on the Democratic County Committee. I've also worked to elect many local candidates, including women, people of color, and candidates from the LGBT community.

If we are going to take back California and get Bush out of office, we need to first unite the Democratic Party in San Francisco. We need to once more become "the party of the big tent." We need to not just pay lip service to including those who have been left out, but to truly give them a seat at the table and include them in the decision-making process.