There will be one No. 1 come March 2 in the District 5 race for
Board of Supervisors.
It is the only Board election
– between incumbent Bob Cruz and challenger Jaime De La Cruz –
which will definitely be decided in the upcoming election.
There will be one No. 1 come March 2 in the District 5 race for Board of Supervisors.
It is the only Board election – between incumbent Bob Cruz and challenger Jaime De La Cruz – which will definitely be decided in the upcoming election.
In each of the other two races for open seats, three candidates are running. So if no one gains more than 50 percent of the vote in those, the two remaining candidates from each of the groups would compete in runoff elections in November.
That seems to single out District 5, for now, as the most compelling of the three races. Though the competition between the retired incumbent and his late-30s challenger didn’t need any added flair to make it interesting.
De La Cruz is still steaming over Cruz’s request to have a “No. 1” placed before his name on the ballot. Cruz did it to distinguish their names, exercising a right – for the first time in county history – intended to avoid voter confusion.
Bob Cruz
Cruz, who described his personality as outgoing, moved to San Benito County with his migrant parents when he was 6 years old. He hasn’t left since, aside from a five-year stint in Lodi for a job.
“I’m just outgoing, and that’s my personality,” Cruz said. “I can’t change.”
Retired at the age of 53 to battle colon cancer, Cruz, 67, has since served on both the city and county planning commissions and is now finishing his second term as a supervisor.
He believes he’s a better candidate than De La Cruz because, he said, “One answer is honesty.”
“I have run my campaign strictly, strictly on the positive,” Cruz said.
His focus as a supervisor, he said, are issues related to the county’s youth. He’s a director for the YMCA and takes credit for helping kick start the organization locally.
He said he’ll continue to fight for the county’s younger residents, along with enhancement of library services.
“Yes, I’ve been called by many people, ‘the godfather of the YMCA,'” he said.
Other crucial issues the county will likely face in the coming years, Cruz said, include the fostering of more affordable housing and Hollister’s problems with sewage, bad drinking water and battered streets.
Regarding the most talked about issue right now – Measure G – Cruz said it “has its good points and it has its bad points.” He called it a “restrictive measure.”
But he’s not against Measure G – at least telling by his aye for its approval when the Board enacted it – then called the Growth Control Initiative – in April. That controversial decision was followed by a signature referendum that placed it on the ballot anyhow, and a flurry of ensuing litigation on the matter.
“Whatever the vote of the people, whatever which way they go, it will be something that I have no choice but to follow and try to do the best I can,” he said.
He went on: “It doesn’t matter how you vote on Measure G. I really would like to be the first Jerry Lewis of San Benito County. I want your money for our youth. Let’s think about our youth. Not just growth, but youth.”
Cruz and other supervisors have been questioned in recent months on ethical issues. A private investigator, whose services were commissioned by anonymous residents, claims the Board violated the open meetings law and helped draft Measure G.
Cruz’s thoughts on propriety? He mentioned recent Board discussions of forming an ethics committee. But its primary purpose would be oversight of campaigns.
“I think we need something like that,” Cruz said.
He was recently elected by fellow supervisors to succeed Supervisor Richard Scagliotti as the Board chairman. Cruz said he believes “not too many things” have gone wrong in the past seven years.
Jaime De La Cruz
De La Cruz, though, believes it’s time for fresh leadership in San Benito County. He described himself as a listener.
“I listen a lot,” De La Cruz said. “I make my own decisions. But I do listen to people.”
De La Cruz, who has lived here his whole life, is certainly not a newcomer to civic involvement. He’s currently on the San Benito County Water District Board, the Gavilan College Board of Trustees and the board for the San Benito Health Foundation.
He also has been a Hollister planning commissioner and a parks and recreation commissioner.
That array of experience – and he also earned a bachelor’s degree in accounting and finance – gives him an advantage over the incumbent, he said.
“You need someone who is open-minded to issues,” he said.
His big push, he said, is for the creation of jobs in Hollister, where 90 percent of District 5 constituents live. A stagnant local economy needs a boost, he said. Plus, it would be nice for all those commuters if they could work locally instead of driving to the Silicon Valley, he said.
That’s where he feels the Board needs the most improvement – in fostering business growth.
“I feel we need to provide jobs, jobs and more jobs in this community,” De La Cruz said.
Other issues De La Cruz said must be addressed in the coming years include affordability of housing, infrastructure improvements and enhancement of public safety services.
“Who can afford a home in the county for a half-million dollars?” he asked.
And De La Cruz believes the cost of housing will increase even more if voters approve Measure G.
For that reason, and he believes the initiative would further damage the local economy, he is opposed to Measure G.
“Measure G does not solve the City of Hollister’s problems,” he said.
Another problem that arose in recent months, residents’ concerns over ethics in government, should also be addressed, he said.
He doesn’t think the civil grand jury, which investigates local government, is enough. There should be another “watchdog organization,” he said. And he mentioned the thought of implementing term limits for county supervisors.
“Eight years is long enough to push for all the ideas and projects this individual is going to push for,” he said.
De La Cruz said he believes there are too many egos among local elected officials.
“I just feel it’s time for change,” he said.
