Sonoma County

Aminzadeh says sustainable vegetation management is needed to prevent the spread of wildfires. “We know that investing in wildfire prevention is far more cost-effective than having to fight a wildfire and then rebuild,” she says. Aminzadeh also would bolster support for people to protect their homes from wildfires, a process called “home-hardening.” Providing state tax credits for fire-safe homes can help incentivize home-hardening, she says, adding “I think there's a big gap between what we know helps prevent a wildfire spreading and what homeowners feel empowered to do.”

Connolly wants to make sure the undergrounding of utility lines and vegetation management are approached in an “environmentally sensitive” way. “We should not be unnecessarily cutting down trees, for example. People are very concerned about that,” he says. He touted the recent creation of a new body, the Marin Wildfire Prevention Authority, as proof of the district “stepping up and taking matters into our own hands.” He wants to make sure communities have the resources they need by ensuring the state is a “true partner,” including having enough fire-prevention in place to protect communities.

Aminzadeh says “the housing needs in the district are significant,” even as some in the community push back against housing. She told a story of being booed at a recent candidate forum for saying “additional housing was needed.” Still, she says building more dense housing is key to tackling climate change. The more people live close to their work, or to transit-rich commuter corridors, the fewer people have to drive. “I think tapping into the environmental ethos and history and honoring that history, but articulating the ways in which that needs to shift could be quite powerful,” she says.

Connolly points to accessory dwelling units (ADUs) on people’s properties and converting offices to housing as ways to alleviate California’s housing and rental crisis. Connolly says the state often offers “one-size-fits-all” housing-production mandates that don’t fit local communities, like allowing housing to be built near areas at risk of wildfire. When talking about state mandates for housing production, he says of the community, “we feel the numbers are high,” but “we’re fully committed to meeting obligations.”

Aminzadeh is voicing her support for Proposition 1, which would enshrine abortion rights in the California constitution. “Once that right is in our constitution,” she says, she would immediately urge Gov. Gavin Newsom to fully fund transportation for anyone out-of-state seeking abortions in California. Aminzadeh would also seek to integrate abortion services into more existing community clinics. She also wants to bolster leave rights for people experiencing miscarriages, “which is something that I have dealt with personally,” she says.

Connolly wants California to be “a sanctuary state for abortion rights and reproductive health care.” He says he strongly supports Proposition 1 and says “every waking moment in the Capitol,” he’s going to push for women and gender equality, including other issues, like equal pay. “Throughout my career I have promoted women, I have supported women in elective office. I have hired women,” he says. “One of my chief strategists is a woman who is also a member of the LGBTQ+ community.” Connolly says California needs to provide clinics and safe access for abortions.

Aminzadeh says providing more options for people to get to Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit trains, like shuttles or bike paths, would boost ridership. “We can make SMART smarter,” she says. Aminzadeh also favors making SMART train ridership free, which is necessary “if we’re really trying to serve essential workers or lower-income people.” She says her opponent, Damon Connolly, “failed to take action in a timely way” to act on making Highway 37 an elevated causeway — which would have restored habitat connectivity — adding that it will now be a “1990s-style highway.”

Connolly wants to focus on boosting SMART train use to get to recreational activities. He says he is “very focused on” Highway 37, and that the periodic flooding of Highway 37 makes it just as much an environmental project as it is a transportation project. The highway lays in wetlands and is threatened by sea-level rise. But beyond climate troubles, the two-lane road needs a revamp because it’s frequently bottlenecked, Connolly said. “People are stuck in soul-crushing traffic during commute hours.” He says he is in favor of making fares more uniform across different transit agencies to incentivize riding ferries, buses and trains in concert. He is advocating to use a movable barrier on the Richmond-San Rafael Bridge, which would also help make a bike lane there.