Shawn Kumagai endorsed for Assembly District 20

[Ellis Goldberg]

PRESS RELEASE  For immediate distribution

Shawn Kumagai endorsed for
Assembly District 20

 

The Tri Valley Democratic Club is pleased to announce the endorsement of Shawn Kumagai for Assembly in District 20.  The endorsement vote was held Monday January 17, 2022 at the Tri Valley Democratic Club – Zoom meeting.  Two other candidates, Jennifer Esteen and Liz Ortega addressed the club in addition to Shawn Kumagai.  Visit the club Youtube channel to see the video of the meeting where the Democratic candidates for Assembly District 20, introduced themselves and answered questions from the membership.   Also see Joe Garofoli’s SF Chronicle article about the meeting.

 

Why the Tri Valley Dems endorsed Shawn
Many of our members respect Shawn because they understand his character, molded by his life experiences and struggles.  Shawn is a gay married man from a single mom family. Through difficult financial times his mom studied to become a nurse and joined the military, as had her father, Shawn’s grandfather.  When’s his mother passed away, Shawn adopted and raised his brother, who is 25 years younger than him and recently enlisted.   Shawn spoke of his experiences and mission:

When I returned from a Navy deployment, I came to Dublin to put down roots and raise my younger brother after our mother passed away. But it was extremely difficult for our family to find an affordable home in our community. When I share our story about how hard it was to find housing, it still floors me how many of our neighbors have experienced the same struggle.

The skyrocketing cost of housing barring so many families from homeownership is exclusionary and unacceptable. So many in our community are one catastrophe away from being driven out of their home or onto the streets – and it’s why on the Dublin City Council I made it my mission to deliver real solutions to the housing crisis.

As Vice Mayor and Council member, I passed a transit-oriented, all-affordable housing project at the West Dublin BART station with 300+ affordable units including over 40 permanent supportive housing units for our unhoused residents. We also brought home more affordable units for seniors, a 575-unit project that will further increase our housing stock as well as parks and trails to improve our quality of life in the city. And we approved nearly 1,000 units in our middle income housing program. 

Shawn differentiates himself from the other candidates, he will take campaign contributions from developers, since they build housing and affordable housing is his main reason for running for office.  He won’t take contributions from tobacco or oil companies, but will take contributions from labor unions, but not police unions.  

Another differentiator is Shawn’s take on policing.  He has been a US Navy military intelligence officer for 20 years and understands that technology can be used to prevent and deter crime as well as catch perpetrators.  As Assembly Member Rebecca Bauer-Kahan’s District Director, Shawn is involved with her championing AB 988 the mental health hot line which will allow mental health professionals to respond to situations where appropriate, instead of inappropriate police responses. 

Shawn has an impressive resume:

He’s a third-generation LGBTQ veteran, joining the military during “don’t ask, don’t tell”, the son of a first generation Japanese immigrant and the only Asian American Pacific Islander (AAPI) candidate in the race.  He’s a national security expert with 20 years of Navy experience.  Shawn worked his way through school, and as a Naval linguist holds a degree in Mandarin Chinese and a Masters in Instructional Science and Technology. 

Shawn is the District Director for a progressive Assemblywoman and is the only Democratic candidate holding elected office, that experience edge will help him hit the ground running as an assembly member both in the legislative role and servicing district constituents role.  

He was an Organizing for Action fellow and was elected by his neighbors as a California Democratic Party delegate. Shawn is a lifelong Democrat who made history in 2018 as the first openly gay City Council Member elected in Dublin. Since then, he’s been delivering transit-oriented affordable housing for seniors and low-income residents, helping local small businesses stay afloat during the pandemic, expanding good-paying green jobs, and making his city safer. Shawn is protecting for us as a Navy Reservist assigned to an intelligence unit at Camp Parks. As a delegate in the California Democratic Party, Shawn is the Treasurer of the Asian American Caucus, an active member of the Alameda Democratic Party Central Committee and the Tri Valley Democratic Club. 

Club members are involved in Shawn’s campaign, donating to his campaign, contacting voters and organizing on line parties where they can introduce Shawn to potential supporters.  Democratic clubs vet Democratic candidates so we can advise friends, neighbors & family with first hand knowledge.  The club takes this responsibility seriously and follows rules stated in our bylaws.   Club members are encouraged to work for the election of endorsed candidates, in 2022 they can do that by visiting ShawnKumagai.com.

 

Tri Valley Democratic Club Press Contacts

 

Evan Branning President 310-993-3005 ev...@chefalaporte.com

Ellis Goldberg Political Director  925 831 8355 LAND 925 451 4303 CELL Elli...@aol.com

[rankl...@comcast.net]

I posted to our website….It’s under Endorsements/2022 Endorserments

Jackie

On Jan 30, 2022, at 9:28 PM, 'Ellis Goldberg' via TVDC Event Bulletin <tvdc-even...@googlegroups.com> wrote:

Elli...@aol.com

[Ellis Goldberg]

PRESS RELEASE  For immediate distribution

Cheryl Cook-Kallio endorsed for
Alameda County School District 7

 

The Tri Valley Democratic Club is pleased to announce the endorsement of Cheryl Cook-Kallio for Alameda County School District 7 which encompasses Sunol, Pleasanton Livermore, Dublin and unicorporated to the San Joaquin county line. (Includes Mountain House Elementary School District).  This race will be decided in the June 7 primary.  The endorsement vote was held Monday May 16, 2022 at the Tri Valley Democratic Club.  Watch the YouTube video of the endorsement interview by club members to better understand why she is endorsed.

WATCH LATER

ADD TO QUEUE

May 16, 2022 - Tri Valley Dems Monthly Meeting

Why the Tri Valley Dems endorsed Cheryl

TVDC members have known and worked with Cheryl for many years, she has been one of our political leaders and a champion for educating our kids.  As a political leader she has served on the Pleasanton City Council as well as on a long list of advisory boards, programs and public service groups.  Her political experience will be of great value to the county school board, she knows how to make democracy work.  Her 40 years of teaching experience means she has the tools to be a champion for our kids education, she knows her way around the classroom.  She knows what motivates students and what has the opposite effect.  

She will champion PUBLIC education while her two opponents champion CORPORATE owned education and charter schools like the one that went bankrupt in Livermore and extorted $60M from the school board so they would have funding to finish that school year. (See https://www.eastbaytimes.com/2016/11/09/livermore-charter-schools-file-for-bankruptcy/)

TVDC members are very aware of the influence the charter schools industry has on California elections, pouring money into campaigns opposing candidates who want to prevent charter schools from raiding local school board funds for financial gain.  Cheryl will safeguard those funds and make sure they are spent wisely.  

The main reason TVDC endorses Cheryl is that we know and trust her, not just with our taxpayer dollars but with the health, safety and education of our kids.  Club members are encouraged to work for the election of endorsed candidates, in 2022 they can do that by visiting https://cook-kallio.com/

 

Tri Valley Democratic Club Press Contacts

 

Richard Li Vice President 408-637-0826 richar...@gmail.com