Following his election to the California 33rd District Assembly seat, Republican Katcho Achadjian sent out this letter to local voters: “I am humbled by the opportunity given to me by the good people of San Luis Obispo and northern Santa Barbara counties to serve as their representative in the state Assembly. It is especially satisfying that this long campaign has been remarked upon for its serious and positive discourse on the issues. I look forward to getting down to work and collaborating with all people of goodwill, here and in Sacramento, to help deliver solutions on these issues of critical importance to our communities. I would like to extend my profound gratitude to my family and to the large extended family of volunteers who enriched me all along the way with their care and support.”
Seemingly unfazed by his loss to Democrat Das Williams in the race for the 35th District Assembly seat, Republican Mike Stoker announced in an e-mail on Nov. 4 his intention to run again in 2012 should district lines be redrawn. “In 2012, our Assembly district will be redrawn by the California Redistricting Commission. The new districts should be announced next August or September,” Stoker said. “One of the heaviest-weighted goals for drawing districts is keeping a county whole. The next highest goal is keeping cities whole. When you look at Santa Barbara County, our countywide population is essentially the number of people that will be put into an Assembly district. Consequently, many of the political pundits in Sacramento have speculated for months that our new Assembly district will pick up the rest of northern Santa Barbara County and will forfeit Ventura and Oxnard. … Based on these facts and after talking to over a hundred community leaders in Santa Barbara County and key people in Sacramento, I have made the decision that I am definitely going to run for Assembly in 2012 should the new district be drawn to essentially be Santa Barbara County. And while many of you have strongly urged me to run if the district essentially remains the same, I definitely will not run should that happen.”
This article appears in Nov 11-18, 2010.