In November, North Sacramento voters will choose between a veteran politician or a Del Paso Heights native seeking office for the first time.
Both candidates face the challenge of convincing neighbors they will keep the diverse district’s best interests in mind and represent them effectively, community members said.
Getting voters to believe them won’t be easy because for years District 2 has faced problems of what residents describe as underfunding, neglect and inadequate representation. In January, the district’s last elected City Council member, Sean Loloee, resigned after pleading not guilty to a 25-count federal indictment related to his Viva Supermarket grocery store businesses. Also, the U.S. Department of Justice identified him as a resident of the Placer County community of Granite Bay, despite a 2022 city-ordered independent investigation that determined he lived in the city of Sacramento district he represented.
Debra Cummings lives in Del Paso Heights, where she was born and raised. She works in community crisis response and said voters need to think through their options and elect someone who lives in the area, knows its history and worries about the same concerns residents have across the district.
“It’s a trust issue,” Cummings said. “I think people just lost hope and faith. And this with Sean Loloee has really just put us back into that state.”
Cummings said she wants to see the next council member to fight for resources as well as the community’s children and seniors.
“We are triggered here and not only financially. With homeless, with gun violence. It’s a lot,” Cummings said.
Council member Shoun Thao, who’s also the Executive Director of the nonprofit Hmong Parents and Youth United, was appointed to represent the district until after this November’s election. Thao said distrust dates back to when the city annexed North Sacramento in 1964.
Some longtime residents, including in historically Black communities, point to annexation as the root problem. But, Thao added, many immigrants and refugees recently moved to the area. The city needs to build trust with newer residents as well, he said.
Large Latino, Hmong, Lao, and Afghan communities call the diverse district home. Thao said the candidates need to connect with and hear all of the community’s voices. He identified common needs such as as grocery stores, business support and language access services.
“I think that’s something incumbent on whoever is in leadership to provide those [resources] and the best outreach and engagement for our communities that are truly marginalized,” Thao said.
Nasir Ramesh volunteers for the Muslim American Society-Social Services Foundation located just outside of the district. He works with clients in North Sacramento, including Afghan refugees who arrived after the Taliban took control of the country in 2021. Ramesh said the candidates also need to introduce themselves to refugees who recently moved to the area.
“A representative is expected to be the voice of that community at the governmental level working to build trust and extend an equal relationship with the community,” Ramesh said.
Candidates on building trust, priorities
Both candidates for the council seat claim they have built relationships over years as active longtime residents.
Roger Dickinson served as a California Assembly member from 2010 to 2014, and as a Sacramento County Supervisor from 1994 to 2010. The 74-year-old has lived in North Sacramento since 1978 and grew up in the East Bay area city of El Cerrito. He works as the policy director for CivicWell, a nonprofit that supports developing sustainable policies, and nearly won the primary election outright with 44.7% of the vote.
Dickinson said he believes building back trust involves listening to people, responding to their concerns and interests and forming coalitions. He added that people from different backgrounds want similar fundamentals, like opportunities for young people and good jobs.
“One of the things I am very focused on is trying to look across neighborhoods and across geographical parts of the district, identify those things that are in our common interest, and bring people together to unite behind those priorities,” Dickinson said.
Dickinson sees the district’s top priorities as attracting economic investment to the area, addressing homelessness and supporting youth development. He said prevention is key to reducing homelessness.
“Until we interrupt the pipeline of people becoming homeless, all the good things that do happen out on the street will not appear to be making any progress,” Dickinson said.
Sacramento City Council District 2 candidate Roger Dickinson speaks at his campaign kick off in Sacramento, Calif., on Aug. 24, 2024.Kristin Lam/CapRadio
Dickinson’s opponent in the race is Stephen Walton. He identified homelessness as a top issue, too and said he wants to see other council districts work together on homelessness. Walton said the high number of shelters in North Sacramento is unfair.
“How we address these issues is by providing resources and then by the rest of the city contributing,” Walton said. “Not just placing everything that they don’t want onto us and without any resources.”
Walton hasn’t held public elected office before. But the 43-year-old realtor grew up in Del Paso Heights and his family has called the area home for nearly 90 years.
He previously participated in Sacramento’s Community Ambassador Program, which aims to help break down cultural and trust barriers to accessing city resources. Walton said he can leverage existing relationships, including ones he formed as a Grant High School graduate and an advisor for the plan to revitalize the Marysville-Del Paso Boulevard corridor.
“These are deep roots, connections that we now can build together to rebuild the trust in the community, but also the engagement in the community,” Walton said. “I'm personally not just asking for trust in me as a leader. That's a piece of it. I'm asking for collaboration.”
Besides homelessness, Walton said he believes focusing on core services is the district’s priority. He gave safe and clean streets, police and fire services and regular park maintenance as examples.
District 2 voters have until Nov. 5 to decide who they want to entrust with representing them. Whoever wins the election will begin a four-year term on Dec. 10.
Produced with assistance from the Public Media Journalists Association Editor Corps funded by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, a private corporation funded by the American people.
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