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Field set to replace Nadia Lockyer
Oakland Tribune ^ | 5/17/12 | Matthew Artz and Angela Woodall

Posted on 05/17/2012 7:23:38 PM PDT by SmithL

OAKLAND -- Eight candidates are vying to replace disgraced ex-Alameda County Supervisor Nadia Lockyer including three veteran city politicians and Lockyer's predecessor Gail Steele.

The major names in addition to Steele are Union City Mayor Mark Green, who also is running for State Assembly; former Union City Councilman Richard Valle, who also is running to be that city's mayor; and Newark Councilwoman Ana Apodaca, who lost a mayoral bid last year.

County supervisors next month are scheduled to appoint Lockyer's successor, who will serve through the November general election, when voters in Hayward, Union City, Newark, Sunol and north Fremont will elect a new supervisor to serve out the remaining two years of Lockyer's term.

The appointee likely would have the inside track to winning the November election for District 2. County supervisor is one of the more sought after posts in local politics because it offers high pay, no term limits and little precedent for incumbents being voted out of office.

Lockyer romped to victory in 2010 behind the formidable campaign war chest amassed by her husband, State Treasurer Bill Lockyer. But she resigned last month amid scandalous revelations about drug abuse and an affair with a meth addict.

The deadline for candidates seeking the appointment passed Tuesday with two potentially formidable candidates -- former Assembly Majority Leader Alberto Torrico and Hayward Councilman Mark Salinas -- opting not to vie for the seat.

Also not seeking the appointment was soon-to-be-termed-out State Sen. Mary Hayashi, who had inquired about the post just months after pleading no contest to misdemeanor grand theft charges for shoplifting at Neiman Marcus.

Of the four veteran politicians seeking the appointment, only Steele wrote that she would not seek election to the seat in November. Steele, a Hayward resident, held the seat from 1992 through 2010, with electoral victories over both Valle and Green.

Green wrote on his application that he would not seek election to the county seat in November if he places among the top two finishers in the June Assembly Primary, which would qualify him for the November ballot in that race.

Four political outsiders also applied for the appointment. They are Thomas Ajawara, a former manager at T-Mobile; Larry Johnson, a retired telephone company administrator; Sheryl Grant, a technology sales executive and community volunteer; and Myrla Raymundo, a community volunteer, who lost a 2001 city council bid in Union City.

Supervisors oversee a $2.5 billion budget, vote on major real estate development projects and distribute millions to community-based organizations. They also administer policy for the O.co Coliseum complex -- home to three professional sports teams.

The current board plans to select three finalists during a 2 p.m. Tuesday meeting. The finalists are scheduled to be interviewed May 29, with supervisors scheduled to make the appointment June 5 and swear in their choice June 12.


TOPICS: Crime/Corruption; Extended News; Government; Politics/Elections; US: California
KEYWORDS: alameda; cultureofcorruption; lockyer; rat
Keyword: Lockyer
1 posted on 05/17/2012 7:23:43 PM PDT by SmithL
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