Politics

Millions of people across the U.S. gathered in thousands of cities Oct. 18 to protest the Donald Trump Administration. Known nationwide as the “No Kings” protest, demonstrators included hundreds in San Juan Bautista and Hollister. Local protesters displayed handmade signs criticizing the Trump Administration’s...

Ballots and voting information packets for the Nov. 4 special statewide election are in the mail for San Benito County’s 37,000-plus registered voters.  Early voting started Oct. 6. Voters can begin casting their ballots by mail; 24-hour drop box; or in person at one of...

Proponents of an effort to recall San Benito County District 5 Supervisor Ignacio Velazquez—who has served on the board for less than one year—submitted a petition with more than 2,200 signatures to election officials last week.  In a Sept. 23 letter to the committee’s treasurer,...

Dozens of San Benito County employees and community members participated in a demonstration Sept. 22 calling on local officials to protect essential services and make responsible fiscal decisions as the county faces a several-million dollar budget shortfall.  The protest at the county supervisors’ chambers building...

Art & Rebellion, a Santa Cruz-based self-described resistance group, staged a peaceful theatrical protest at Pacific Scientific Energetic Materials Company in Hollister on Aug. 21.  Garbed in brilliant colors, goofy hats, glittery jackets, bright red noses and curly wigs, waving umbrellas, batons and plungers, the...

A group of San Benito County residents calling themselves the “Public Safety First” committee is seeking to recall two supervisors less than a year after they were sworn in for office.  The group recently began circulating petitions throughout the county to recall District 2 Supervisor...

After months of fraught negotiations, San Benito County and the City of San Juan Bautista have finally come to an agreement on fire and emergency medical services with the City of Hollister.  The board of supervisors approved the county’s side of the contract for fire...

Millions of people in cities and towns throughout the nation joined the “No Kings” protest on June 14—a crowd that included several hundred protesters in southeast Hollister.  The event was organized in 2,000 cities in the U.S. to protest President Donald Trump’s immigration policies, and...

Esperanza Colio Warren, who has more than two decades of public service leadership experience, is San Benito County’s new County Administrative Officer.  The board of supervisors appointed Colio Warren to the position last week. She will begin her new job as CAO June 16.  Colio Warren’s...

The San Benito County Board of Supervisors formally suspended negotiations with the City of Hollister for the renewal of a contract for fire services.  The 3-2 vote at the board’s April 22 meeting followed the Hollister City Council’s rejection the previous evening of the terms...