MEET THE CANDIDATES NIGHT

Fort Bragg Resident Kendall Smith and Westport resident Steve Cardullo, the
two candidates for the Fourth District Supervisor position met in Town Hall
on Feb. 12 for a forum held by the League of Women Voters.

Steve Cardullo is married, with four kids and has lived on the coast for 29
years. He has served as a board member on the Westport Water District, as
well as a labor advocate, receiving leadership and lifetime achievements for
his work. He is a Vietnam veteran, wounded and decorated for his service in
combat in 1968. He attended Sacramento City College, with a major in history
and a minor in political law. For the last 25 years he has been employed by
the Department of Transportation. Cardullo said that he is often asked why
he decided to run, he said that there were several issues in the county he
wanted to see addressed, which he felt were not being looked at.

"I could give you that speech that if we increase funding and services to
the coast, that everything will be fine," he said. "It's the same speech you
hear every four years, and I am not going to insult you by telling you
that."

Cardullo said he felt that it was a supervisor's job to get funding to their
district, along with services, proportionate to the district's needs. "If
elected, I will do just that," he said. Cardullo said the Board of
Supervisors could help streamline the permitting process, he suggested that
the Supervisors look outside the borders of the county to bring in business
to the county and coast. When asked what could be done to strengthen the
local economy, Cardullo said that diversification was key. "If we don't
diversify our economy, we'll face the same problem. Industries go down, and
communities are devastated," he said. "The problems that got us here are
that we have not been diverse enough." He said living wage employment to the
district was his priority concern, Cardullo said supervisors need to look
beyond their term, to see how they would like to see the districts after
their term in office.

Cardullo also said that he could see that the youth of the community, who
had invested their lives with their families here, were having to leave the
area due to a lack of housing and employment. "I find that appalling," he
said.

Cardullo said that as an employee of the Department of Transportation, he
felt it was important to maintain the roads of the county. Cardullo cited
reports that the cost to fix the county roads would currently total $110
million. "We need to build a super fund to address the maintenance issues
before that cost hits $200 to $300 million," he said. When asked where the
money would come from to develop such a fund, Cardullo responded, "Over the
next few years, we will face hard times in the county, economically. Public
Safety should never become a question of funding." He went on to add that
federal funding was available to help with the repairs of county roads,
which he said were "unsafe in many areas." Although he said it would not
happen overnight, Cardullo stressed the importance of the roadway
infrastructure. "It is the most expensive investment that the people have
and we need to maintain that investment."

Measure H

Cardullo said that he supported Measure H, the movement to ban the
introduction of Genetically Modified Organisms to Mendocino County. "I try
to read the literature, and I can't say I understand it all, but I am
concerned that we could unleash something on our environment that we will
not be able to take back." Cardullo said that the scientific community
should continue to experiment in the field, and that their research should
be closely followed. "If this were a drug, it would not have gotten through
the Food and Drug Administration this fast," he said.

Endorsements

Saying that his was a grass roots campaign, Cardullo did not have the
official endorsements of Smith, but noted that he has received a lot of
support since announcing his candidacy. "I have a feeling that the working
community is backing me," he said. However, both he and Smith shared the
endorsement of the County Employees Union.

When asked how he felt about the legalization of medical marijuana, Cardullo
showed support. He said he felt that we have gone too long incarcerating
people for something he felt was less harmful than alcohol "I think that
it's something that we should petition the federal government as a people,
to legalize," he said.

Kendall Smith opened saying she has spent half of her life here, after
moving to the county in 1976, and to Fort Bragg in 1989. Smith said that she
worked for the county for 17 years, before working in the Department of
Public Health, working in two departments. During her time working in
administration, she said she had the opportunity to work within and meet
members of all the communities in the county. She was later recruited in
1997 by Mike Thompson, a state senator at the time, to be his
representative, and has remained through his transition from the state to
the federal level.

"I feel it's very important for people with experience, leadership skills
and good decision making skills, to be in county government," she said.
"It's public service that I have done most of my life and I feel that I am
good at it."

Smith said that she decided to run after several community members requested
that she do so. She added that there were many difficult financial
situations facing the county that will create challenges for supervisors,
but that she was up to the task.

When asked about strengthening the local economy, Smith said that although
the timber industry was diminishing, the organic wine grape trade was a very
important niche for the county. Smith agreed that the supervisors need to go
outside the county to bring business and possibly micro-enterprise into the
area, while staying focused on using local resources.

Measure H

Smith said that she was also in support of Measure H, noting that the
technology in question was still somewhat new, and still evolving "A number
of scientific institutions, while talking about the potential values of
Genetically Modified Organisms, are not convinced there are no unintended
consequences," she said. "Those unintended consequences are something we
should be concerned about." Smith noted that the local organic farmers and
growers were concerned about the effects of GMOs. "Do I think the measure is
perfectly written and exemplary, and excellent? No, but I don't think that
there are going to be severe financial consequences."

When asked for her take on the legalization of medical marijuana, Smith said
that Mendocino had been very progressive on the issue, and that the federal
government was moving towards recognizing the importance of it in modern
medicine. However, she showed no support or opposition to its legalization.

Endorsements

When asked, Smith produced a long list of endorsements. The Democratic Party
of Mendocino County, the County Employees Union, The National Women's
Political Caucus, the Sierra Club, the Fort Bragg City Council, Sheriff Tony
Craver, District Attorney Norm Vroman, Supervisor Patti Berg, Senator Wes
Chesbro, and Congressman Mike Thompson, and numerous individuals were listed
as supporting Smith in the race for Supervisor.

When asked how the Board of Supervisors could be made more accessible to the
public and accountable, Smith replied that perhaps some rescheduling needed
to occur. She would support evening meetings, as well as possibly moving
meeting locations to sites within the individual districts. Smith said that
having the meetings within the separate districts would take the board's
business into the community. She later said that as a supervisor, she would
remain accessible and was available at all times to hear from the public.
"It takes a lot longer to shop for groceries," she said smiling.

Smith closed by noting that along with accessibility, advocacy and
accountability were important to her. Smith said that she had been an
advocate for many individuals and businesses, as well as obtaining loans and
grants for non-profit organizations. On accountability, she said that even
though supervisors have to make tough decisions that everyone will not be
entirely happy with, "you make the best decision you can."