Candidates: Jerry Brown (Democratic), Jack Harrison (Peace and Freedom), Chuck Poochigian (Republican), Kenneth Weissman (Libertarian), Michael Wyman

Obviously, there is one big "name" candidate in this selection--Jerry Brown. Brown, the former governor of California and the mayor of Oakland, has the edge over the other candidates due to the instant recognition his name garners. Unfortunately for him, name recognition is not always a positive thing for a campaign. Jerry Brown is known to be a bit eccentric, and definitely outside the mainstream. He wouldn't even qualify to be within his own party's mainstream.

Attorney General, as a position, is often knick-named the "Top Cop" in California. This is were the challenge lies for Brown. As pointed out by Poochigian supporters in a lawsuit, Jerry Brown does not qualify for the position of Attorney General due to the law's requirement that the person elected or appointed to the Attorney General's position should have been able to practice before the Supreme Court for the previous five years. Brown's license to practice law has only been active for three and a half of the last five years. If Brown has integrity at all, which is actually a valid question, he should withdrawal from the race immediately. Sure, he would be required to do so because of a legal technicality, but that is the law. If we want anyone to have a strict interpretation of the law, it should be those who seek offices controlling state law enforcement.

Brown is continuing with the campaign, making the argument, with some legal backing, that inactive and active members of the state bar should both be considered eligible "to be admitted to practice before the Supreme Court." Seems to be a bit of a stretch.

Law and disorder is a very important concern for the Valley, which has seen higher than average rates of violent crime, especially in the cities of Fresno and Stockton. Gang activity is rampant. Drugs have recently been seized from a high number of homes in Natomas, Elk Grove, and Stockton, although the majority of these seizures came from a Bay Area gang's expansion into the Valley. Nonetheless, crime remains one of the top social concerns of residents here.

Whether or not Brown truly is eligible for the position, the clear choice for Attorney General is Chuck Poochigian, the state senator from Fresno. He already knows many of the concerns for Valley residents, as he currently represents the area from Fresno to south of Galt. There are some clear differences between Poochigian and Brown, such as Poochigian's support for the death penalty and Brown's support for gun control. Issue by issue, however, you get the sense that Brown is more interested in adding another feather to his political career, while Poochigian may actually be tougher on crime. When you get down to it, the candidate that will be "tougher" will usually win anyway.

In this race, ValleyVue endorses Chuck Poochigian, but wishes that Brown had been inarguably eligible. It might be quite revealing for the state to have a true debate over these two very different views of how to create a safer California.
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Sources: www.pooch4ag.com, www.jerrybrown.org

The Sacramento Municipal Utilities District (SMUD) is attempting to expand its service borders west into Yolo County. This expansion attempt will be voted for or against in the election in separate ballot measures by those who will be effected by the new service areas. Those two entities include the current SMUD Customers in Sacramento County, as well as the current PG&E customers in Woodland, Davis, and West Sacramento.

Huge amounts of money are being spent trying to convince the voters to not accept the expansion bid. Not too surprisingly, the ads are funded in large part by PG&E. Could Pacific Gas and Electric be really looking out for their customers in Yolo, trying to prevent both they and SMUD customers from being shouldered by an overbearing amount of debt? Of course not. PG&E is a for-profit company, and their interest is in keeping their customers perpetually. In fact, PG&E will be the cause of the overbearing cost, as they have already stated they will try to maximize the costs for SMUD to acquire the utilities infrastructure in Yolo.

So, basically, the company profiting currently from providing power to Yolo county is taking the lead to...keep their profits rolling in. The other criticisms, much more credibly, come from current and potentially future customers fearing the possibility of increased costs, which would essentially diminish to nothing the expected savings on individual electrical bills.

Why would SMUD want to expand into Yolo? As a publicly owned utility, SMUD is interested in keeping rates affordable and service levels high. With a larger customer base, SMUD would be able to gather more resources to increase power services that would include the creation of more renewable sources. There is a measure of accountability to the customers in entities such as SMUD that are absent in the private sector.

Plus, SMUD was invited to expand into the county by the Yolo County Board of Supervisors, and the city councils of Davis, West Sacramento, and Woodland. Yolo County is geographically and economically tied to Sacramento County, as the two work together in many ways. It makes sense for SMUD to operate in both counties, as well as a portion of Placer County.

Admittedly, there probably will be a large financial impact to SMUD when the acquisition of Yolo County begins. However, even some opponents of the annexation agree SMUD's presence in Yolo will eventually benefit the customers there. While the short-term forecast may seem to much of a burden, over time the decision to permit expansion will probably result in lower rates for customers than PG&E can offer.

ValleyVue urges a vote to enable the expansion of SMUD into Yolo County. Vote yes on H and I in Yolo, and yes on L in Sacramento and Placer.

While the upcoming election in California will undoubtedly focus on the race for the governor, there are many other important races to consider. From local measures to legislative offices up for grabs, this election will effect the Central Valley in many ways. ValleyVue is again up and running and will be a source of election analysis in the days leading up to the November 7 election. From Bakersfield to Redding, ValleyVue's got you covered.