Several others considering candidacy
Healdsburg’s Pete Foppiano is the first potential candidate to step forward this week and announce his bid for Fourth District Supervisor, while several other candidates continue to consider a run.
Windsor Town Councilmember Debora Fudge, who has run for the seat twice before, said this week that she is carefully considering a run for the seat, but had yet to make a final decision. Other candidates still considering a run for Supervisor include Cloverdale City Council member Carol Russell, Windsor Town Council member Steve Allen and Healdsburg resident James Gore.
The County Supervisor seat is up for election in 2014 after a surprise announcement made recently by current Supervisor Mike McGuire, who is running for State Senate. McGuire’s run for Senate means he will give up the Supervisor’s chair next fall.
Foppiano is a native Healdsburg resident who owns a mortgage lending and real estate firm in Healdsburg and has spent years in both the public spotlight and volunteering behind the scenes with local non-profits and organizations.
He served on the Healdsburg City Council from 1984 to 1996, twice as Mayor.
“I’m not just testing waters, not kicking tires, I’m running,” he said on Monday morning.
Foppiano said as he has told people his intention to run, the response has been positive.
“If I hadn’t felt I was a credible candidate, I wouldn’t be doing it. It’s important for other people to feel like you should be running as well.”
Foppiano has experience and knows first-hand the time and commitment it takes to run for County Supervisor. He was narrowly defeated in 1994 in a hotly contested election versus Paul Kelley, who went on to sit as the Fourth District’s representative until stepping down in 2010.
“I know what it involves and what it takes,” he said.
In addition to his Healdsburg City Council service, Foppiano served as a member of the Sonoma County Local Agency Formation Commission (LAFCO), the Sonoma County Transportation Authority and the Bay Area Metropolitan Transportation Commission in the 90s.
Since 1999, he has owned Golden Bear Financial.
While he is in the initial stages of launching a campaign, Foppiano said his philosophy of bringing people together for a common goal will be similar to the framework that McGuire has brought to the north county.
“You have to have your own beliefs and convictions, but you have to listen to other points of view. And it’s not just listening to an idea. It’s giving them credence and considering them in making an informed decision. That’s what government should be all about,” he said.
“To me, the idea of public service, is just that, doing something for the community. It’s not about me,” he said. “I have no intention of running for higher office, I’d rather work closer to home.”
The other candidates — Fudge, Allen, Russell and Gore, said they are close to making a decision, but have not finalized plans one way or the other.
“I suppose I am in what is called the ‘exploratory stage,’” Russell said on Monday. She also jokingly called it the “making-sure-you-are-very-careful-when-you-make-a-life-decision” stage.
Fudge said she was doing the same. The longtime Windsor Town Council member has run for the Supervisor’s seat unsuccessfully twice, first against Paul Kelley in 2006 and then against McGuire in 2010.
“I’m getting close to making a decision either way. I’m very seriously considering a run,” she said.
Gore, a small business owner who resides in Healdsburg, said on Tuesday morning that he is also considering a run for the seat.
“I am a strong believer in public service and finding ways to get things done to make public service impactful,” he said. Most recently, Gore was a presidential appointee in the Obama administration as a senior official in the United States Department of Agriculture, before moving back to Sonoma County earlier this year.
Steve Allen has served on the Windsor Town Council since 1998.
Interested candidates have until early next year to file with the Sonoma County Registrar of Voters Office before the 2014 election.
