The deadline has come and gone for candidates for seats that will appear on the June primary ballot. The 24th District Congressional seat, currently held by Lois Capps of Santa Barbara, is the most contested seat of all those on the ballot.
Capps will be challenged by Democrats Paul Coyne Jr. of Santa Maria and Sandra Marshall of San Luis Obispo (also Information Press’ publisher), Republicans Dale Francisco of Santa Barbara, Justin Fareed of Santa Barbara, Chris Mitchum of Santa Barbara, Alexis Stuart of Nipomo and Dr. Brad Allen of Summerland, and Steven Isakson of Atascadero, who has no party preference.
Due to the passing of Proposition 14 in 2010, all registered voters will be able to choose from all candidates for congressional or state office and the top two vote-getters will proceed to the general election in November.
Dr. Brad Allen, a pediatric heart surgeon, in Santa Barbara, said he is running for Congress to help people.
“We need more citizens who can bring professional experience to bear on complex issues, rather than career politicians who are out of touch with what people need,” Allen said in a statement. “I can’t just sit by and let the best healthcare system in the world be destroyed by Obamacare. As a doctor, I know that Obamacare should be replaced with market driven solutions that lower costs, improve access, and empower Americans.”
He said his goal is “to bring common sense back to Congress and fix the mess that career politicians have created.”
For more on Allen, go to www.drbradallenforcongress.com or call 805-350-9870.
Lois Capps, 76, has been in office since March 1998, succeeding her late husband, Walter H. Capps, who was nine months into his term. Before serving in Congress, Capps worked in nursing and eduation.
Capps could not be reached for comment on her campaign for Congress. For more information, go to www.cappsforcongress.com.
Paul Coyne Jr. has lived on the Central Coast for 40 years, attending public schools in Goleta. The Santa Barbara businessman did Ph.D. graudate studies in political science at the University of California Santa Barbara from 1989 to 1993.
Coyne several topics in his platform, one of them being to change Congress. He said that one change includes implementing term limits for all members of Congress, end earmarks and congressional pensions and require that members read the bills they are voting on.
His 60-day plan is to enact the recommendations of the Simpson-Bowles Commission, enact a balanced budget amendment, enact a constitutional amendment that limits Congressional terms to three terms for the House of Representatives and two terns for the Senate, save social security and Medicare, and reduce military spending.
For more information on Coyne, go to www.coyneforcongress.com.
Justin Fareed is a third-generation cattle rancher and is vice president of his family’s business, Pro Band Sports, based in Santa Barbara, where Fareed was born and raised. He has a bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of California Los Angeles, and later moved to Washington, D.C., to serve as a legislative aide for Congressman Ed Withfield. It was there that he grew concerned for the future and committed himself to public service.
He is running on a “Freedom Platform,” that includes free from debt, free to suceed economically and free from an intrusive government. For more on Fareed, go to www.justinfareed.com.
Dale Francisco was elected to the Santa Barbara City Council in 2007 and was re-elected in 2011.
“To get America working again we must promote the policies of lower, simpler taxes and reduced government regulation that will encourage new business start-ups and allow existing businesses to expand,” Francisco wrote on his website about jobs and the economy, one of the issues he is running on. “Employers will not hire more workers when the economy is sluggish and the cost of employing workers is uncertain. We need to foster a business climate that is consistent and small business-friendly because small business drives our economy.”
Steve Isakson, 63, is chief engineer at Rantec Power Systems in Los Osos and is owner of a small consulting firm, Isakson Engineering. He has lived in California for his entire life – minus 15 months that he lived and worked in Antarctica – and has been in SLO County for 43 years.
“I am running because I feel that as an individual with no party preference (non-partisan), I will have an opportunity to work with both sides to get work done on things that both sides at least partially agree on,” Isakson said.
To learn more about Isakson, go to www.steveisaksonforcongress.com.
Sandra Marshall has been the owner and publisher of Information Press since August 1991. She has been actively involved in local issues, elections and community causes since she moved here in 1974. She is currently board director for ECOSLO and program coordinator for Earth Day Alliance.
“I am running for Congress because I see a need for stronger leadership within Congress from the 24th District in California,” Marshall said. “Most current members of Congress are indebted to Dark Money: special interest groups, corporations, Super PACs and make their decisions along those lines rather than with their constituents. We must take the dollars out of elections and return to fairness. Currently elections are being bought by the top 1%. People have lost faith in our elected representatives; look at today’s approval rating – 10%.”
For more on Marshall, go to www.sandramarshall.net.
Chris Mitchum, 70, grew up in Los Angeles, but moved around after he graduated from Webb School. While attending the University of Arizona he began his acting career. He has lived in Santa Barbara since 1984
Mitchum wrote on his website that he is running for Congress because “he sees his country in dire straights and he must take action to defend his country and preserve freedom. He wants his children and his children’s children to say of him, ‘He did all that could be done.’”
To learn more about Mitchum, go to www.chrismitchumforcongress.com.
Alexis Stuart has lived in California since 1989 and in Nipomo for 12 years. She is a credit-building consultant, author, small retail business owner, real estate broker and founder of Credit Power Educational Foundation, Inc.
“I am not a politician, nor will I ever strice to be one,” Alexis wrote in her candidate’s statement. “I am a voeter and small business owner; who, like you, is tired of what is going on in Washington, D.C.”
In a statement, she said that she has common sense solutions and wants to share them with the entire country and help rebuild local and national economies. Her principals are: limited government, fewer regulations, personal responsibilities, religious freedom, lower taxes, eliminate the IRS and “restore our freedom.”
To find out more on Stuart, go to www.alexisstuart4congress.com.
See May’s issue for stories on the other races for office – none have as many candidates as the race for Congress.
