Election 2022: Hurtado, Shepard discuss priorities for Central Valley

Oct. 9—State Sen. Melissa Hurtado, D-Sanger, is hoping voters on Nov. 8 will send her back to Sacramento, where she plans to continue work done on behalf of the 14th District for the nearby, newly redrawn 16th District.

Economic security is the biggest issue facing San Joaquin Valley voters, Hurtado said in an interview Thursday, with a Tuesday release from her office touting more than $465 million that she helped secure for the Central Valley from the state's recent $300 billion budget.

"And that's under attack. There's an affordability crisis, the cost of living is up. There's all these economic issues that we face here in the valley but, quite frankly, as a nation, and so the pocketbook is what's most important to the voters of the valley," Hurtado said. "There's definitely a lot of room to do more. So I think that's the most important one for them."

Republican challenger David Shepard said voters' primary concern is public safety, pointing to a spate of headlines that exemplify how our state is heading in the wrong direction in that respect, sharing a story about how the Tulare County sheriff recently had a hard time keeping suspects in custody more than 24 hours despite their alleged possession of 175,000 fentanyl pills.

Democrats' "soft-on-crime" policies, he said, are why the 16th District's representative needs to support and have the support of district attorneys and sheriffs — endorsements he garnered for all four counties in the 16th: Fresno, Kern, Kings and Tulare.

"We have a series of issues, between the fentanyl crisis taking place, between soft-on-crime laws Prop. 47, Prop. 57 — and I know that this is an issue that not just ... Republicans care about," he said. "This is an issue Democrats care about as well. This is an issue Independents care about."

Hurtado currently represents a district that spans from Fresno to southern Bakersfield. Under redistricting, the 14th District now encompasses only the Merced and Fresno metropolitan areas, along with the region around the Interstate 5 corridor to the west. The 16th District now includes east Bakersfield, northwestern Kern County, along with parts of Fresno, Kings and Tulare counties.

The two candidates are vying for an area with 376,980 voters, including 156,490 Democrats. 106,413 Republicans and 84,489 no party preference voters, according to the latest voter registration report. They had different takes on the numbers and how to turn out the results they want for November, which is likely at least somewhat affected by their varying degrees of success in fundraising.

As an incumbent, Hurtado has been able to raise a little over $2.31 million since Jan. 1 and spend $2.38 million, with more than $545,000 leftover in the campaign war chest as of Sept. 24 because she had money in the bank before the start of the year, according to Cal-Access. Shepard has raised a little over $613,000, and has almost $31,000 left for the same period.

"For me, it's important for people to feel motivated to come out and vote, whether they vote for me, or they don't. Of course, I want to continue to do this important work on behalf of the district, and in order to be able to do that ... we've been focusing on all parties," she said, mentioning anecdotally a Tulare dairy farmer and lifelong Republican whom she counts among her supporters.

Shepard said he wasn't worried about being outspent roughly 4:1 in campaign dollars, because his polling data indicates he has the support he needs, and that his messaging on public safety resonates with those on both sides of the political spectrum.

"Especially now that gas is ticked back up over $6.48 a gallon," he said Thursday. "The economy's tanking. There's a lot of reasons for people to be motivated to show up to the polls this November. But that being said, I'm not short-sighted to just reach our base. I am looking at bringing over moderate Democrats."

How these strategies translate into results will be for the voters to decide on Nov. 8.