The October monthly meeting was dedicated to educating our more than 70 club members and guests in attendance on the positions of the various candidates. In all, 8 candidates took the time to come to our meeting and speak for a few minutes and engage with voters afterwards.
James Kimber, our only “national” candidate, is the Democrat running for Congress against current Republican incumbent Duncan Hunter, Jr. James has spoken to our club many times, usually answering questions on topics currently at the forefront of the news and top of mind for voters. This time, he emphatically said, “ISIS is NOT coming across the border”, addressing the misinformation recently spread by Mr. Hunter.
Fotios “Frank” Tsimboukakis and Nick Shestopole spoke to the club representing our state level candidates. Frank is the Democrat running for State Senate against Republican Joel Anderson. Since Joel Anderson is already in the state Senate, Frank knows that his name recognition is an issue. However, as he described his efforts and working his ground game, “I am going door-to-door seeing as many voters as I possibly can”. Nick is running for State Assembly against Republican Marie Waldron.
At the local level, candidate for Superior Court Judge Office 25, Brad Weinreb and Dara Czerwonka, Dale Bardin, Hans Sison and Raymond McCune all running for the Palomar Hospital Board also spoke. Lastly we heard from three San Marcos Unified School District candidates vying for the two open seats. Pam Lindamood is the only incumbent running for re-election facing challengers Jean Diaz and Stacy Carlson.
Brad Weinreb, Deputy Attorney General, running for Judge of the Superior Court – Office #25 admitted that he’s a Republican. But he said his daughter, who was also in attendance with him, keeps him straight about social and more liberal issues. He considers himself a moderate and seemed convincing that he is preferable to his opponent who he characterized as to the right of Tea Party philosophy.
Professor Seena Trigas, also a past speaker at our club, explained the various propositions and was well balanced in her portrayal of each. She described the pros and cons and was particularly helpful in explaining controversial ones.
It was exciting to see the strong attendance as people wanted to hear from these candidates. After the meeting officially ended, there was great buzz and people remained to engage in animated discussions. To learn who the official Democratic party endorsed candidates are, you can read more about them at the county party website.