The outcome of the November election for Shasta County District 3 supervisors could be the deciding factor within the board.
Incumbent Mary Rickert and District 2 Supervisor Tim Garman often find themselves short-handed, with the board’s far-right majority often getting 3-2 votes.
Rickert told the 60 or so people who recently attended a candidate forum in Shasta Lake that she would like to work with incoming District 2 Supervisor Allen Long and incoming District 4 Supervisor Matt Plummer.
Meanwhile, challenger Corkey Harmon has done his best to dispel expectations that the board’s far-right majority would remain intact if he were to win, as he shares some of the same views as the board’s far-conservative members.
“I am really looking forward to working with two new board members who I have known for years,” Rickert said in her closing statement at the forum.
“And I think they’re the right people coming in and I’m really excited about that. I think I have a great vision of where we can focus our energy that’s good for everybody. And this is a nonpartisan position. I can’t emphasize that enough. I represent all of you. Not just a sect of the political population,” Rickert said.
Harmon said he won’t vote one way or the other and will work to unite the deeply divided administration.
“I’m getting a little frustrated and I’m sure everybody here is getting a little frustrated with all this infighting. I’m not blaming anybody in particular,” Harmon said. “I think everybody’s involved, all five of them. They just don’t seem to get along, they’re not talking and it’s supposed to be amicable. There’s no reason why we can’t disagree with something and be civil about it.”
Candidates represent experience versus change
Rickert is running for a third term and has served on several local boards and commissions. She was also appointed by former Gov. Jerry Brown to serve on the California Board of Forestry. Rickert and her husband own Prather Ranch Meat Co. They also operate a farm and ranch management company.
Harmon, who grew up in Shasta County, is the owner and CEO of Mountain Gate Quarry, White Rock Trucking and Stimpel-Wiebelhaus Associates, an engineering and construction firm in Redding. He has never held public office.
Thursday’s forum was sponsored by the nonpartisan League of Women Voters and took place at the Larry J. Farr Community Center.
All questions came from the audience.
Here are three key points from the event.
Many questions about the toxic atmosphere at supervisory board meetings
Harmon and Rickert were asked how to address the chaotic and rancorous meetings that have become ubiquitous during board meetings.
During her first term, Rickert said, supervisors disagreed but generally got along well. But the COVID-19 pandemic changed things, and some residents began blaming supervisors, angry about lockdowns that closed supervisors’ offices for a time as meetings were held virtually.
Rickert said it is important to show respect.
“You don’t have to agree with what the speaker says, but show some respect. And if you show some respect as a board of trustees, that will equate to respect in the audience,” she said.
Harmon said he would have kept the supervisors’ offices open to the public during the pandemic. “I think that was the beginning of all of our problems. I truly believe that,” Harmon said. “Like I said before, I’m a people person.”
He said the pandemic is an example of Sacramento telling Shasta County what to do and that it has to stop.
Different opinions on controversial electoral commission
There is probably no issue that divides the current administration more than elections.
Residents who pushed debunked theories about election fraud and the claim that the 2020 presidential election was stolen heard from Supervisors Kevin Crye, Patrick Jones and Chris Kelstrom.
Last fall, Jones created the Shasta County Elections Commission, which he sees as a way to bring more transparency to local elections and build trust in the electoral process.
But the citizens’ advisory panel is controversial, and two of its recommendations violate California election law.
Opponents of the commission argue that supervisors should spend more time on issues that matter to most residents, such as homelessness, public safety and building the local economy.
Harmon and Rickert were asked about the commission. Rickert has often been critical of the panel and has voiced her opposition, calling it a waste of time and money.
But Harmon likes the idea of a commission. On Thursday, he told the crowd that no one can prove that there haven’t been problems in local elections. Harmon then spoke about the need for voter ID, saying he wondered why anyone would be against requiring voters to show identification.
Shasta County supervisors cannot mandate voter ID because it is a state law. Any change in voter laws must come from the Legislature.
Furthermore, there is no verified evidence of election fraud in Shasta County.
Harmon said he knows the commission is a “sensitive” topic for some. “I don’t think it’s that sensitive,” he said. “I think we should be very optimistic about what they can dig up and find.”
Rickert said that the electoral commission had not brought anything sensible to the council.
“I always said, ‘Show me the fraud,’” she said.
“The other thing is that since this commission has been in existence, they’ve asked the board twice to approve things that would violate the law. And even at the last meeting, the County Counsel (Joseph Larmour) said ‘no, no, don’t do this,'” Rickert added.
She pointed to the commission’s Sept. 9 meeting, when Larmour told commissioners to set aside a recommendation to supervisors to limit the number of mail votes in elections and return to single-day voting, saying an effort to do so “would not stand up to a (legal) challenge.”
Rickert and Harmon were also asked about their position on hand counting of ballots.
Rickert said the county manually counts ballots as part of its post-election audit. But studies have shown that manually counting ballots for an entire election would be too time-consuming and expensive and not as accurate, she added.
Harmon countered, “I have no problem with manual counting. If we have to manual count to make sure it’s accurate, then let’s manual count.”
For the record, Shasta County has conducted a 1% count audit of every election since 2018 and found one error. Election officials say the error was made by a human, not a machine.
Harmon promises to “learn all the little details”
Harmon and Rickert were asked about measures P and Q, which are on the November ballot.
Measure P would amend the Shasta County Charter to prohibit the county from using eminent domain to acquire property from someone without that person’s consent and give that land to another person or entity. Measure Q would allow supervisors to fill an unexpected vacancy of an elected official through appointment or special election.
Harmon said he was in favor of Shasta becoming a charter county, but admitted he doesn’t “remember” Measures P or Q. He said he supports citizen property rights and doesn’t want the state to step in to fill seats that are vacated by an elected official.
“I’m going to learn everything there is to know about all of these things and I’m a little behind on this. I know Mary has been in this job for two terms. Please don’t be critical of me because I don’t know all the little details. I’m going to learn all the little details. I’m very eager to learn and I really want to represent the people,” Harmon said.
Rickert opposes giving supervisors the power to appoint an elected official if they choose, saying that would give the board too much power.
“The reason is, based on what I’ve seen over the last three or four years, I understand how boards can get politically skewed and I think it’s … important for the people to have their voices heard. I don’t think it’s right for four supervisors to elect another supervisor from a district, say District 4. I think the people of District 4 should elect that supervisor,” Rickert said.
Rickert said she contacted Troy Bartolomei, the county’s Public Works Director, to ask him how many times the county has used eminent domain in the past 25 years.
“He said it three times and it was about two bridges and a bike path. It wasn’t about taking away people’s property rights,” Rickert said, adding that Measure P is being misrepresented.
David Benda covers business, development and whatever else is on the news for the USA TODAY Network in Redding. He also writes the weekly column “Buzz on the Street.” He’s part of a team of dedicated reporters who investigate abuses, report breaking news and tell other stories affecting your community. Reach him at X, formerly Twitter, @DavidBenda_RS or by phone at 1-530-338=8323. To support and continue this work, please subscribe today.
This article originally appeared on Redding Record Searchlight: What is the position of the candidates for Shasta District 3 supervisor on these issues?
