Bay Area GOP July '10 Newsletter

Bay Area GOP July Newsletter

Blakeslee Leads in SD-15; On to Round Two

As elections officials counted the votes, a slow drama unfolded in the State Senate District 15 special election. Republican Sam Blakeslee's vote was gradually increasing, but leveled off at about 49.5%, just short of the majority needed to win outright.

It was a solid victory over Democrat John Laird's 42% and two minor party candidates. Since no candidate received a majority, the runoff election will be held on August 17th.

The 200-mile long district runs from Saratoga to Santa Maria. The seat became vacant when Abel Maldonado was confirmed as Lieutenant Governor. Sam Blakeslee is the Assemblyman for the southern portion, centered around San Luis Obispo.

Blakeslee was elected to the State Assembly in 2004 and re-elected twice by overwhelming margins. He has delivered meaningful legislative accomplishments on job creation, government reform, renewable energy, agriculture, conservation, public safety, consumer protection, and seismic safety. He also served as Assembly Republican Leader.

Sam Blakeslee was raised on the Central Coast. After a career in construction, he earned two degrees in geophysics from UC Berkeley and a Ph.D. from UC Santa Barbara for his research in seismic scattering, micro-earthquake studies, and fault-zone attenuation. He is published in numerous scientific journals.

After graduation, Blakeslee worked as a research scientist at Exxon's research lab in Texas, where he received a patent for a geological imaging technique. Later, he became a strategic planner.

Upon returning to the Central Coast, Sam Blakeslee became president of the family investment firm and helped to grow the firm into a thriving business.

Prior to his election to the Legislature, Blakeslee served on a number of boards-most notably as an elected Trustee for Cuesta Community College.

In 1999, Sam Blakeslee authored a successful countywide ballot measure to create a long-term vision for PG&E's 12 mile scenic coastline known as the Diablo Canyon Lands.

Assemblyman Blakeslee is married to Kara, a Duke law grad. In 2002, Kara joined the American Land Conservancy, and helped complete the landmark Hearst Ranch conservation project, which created a new coastal state park.

Sam and Kara have two daughters and a son and live in San Luis Obispo.

Learn more about Sam Blakeslee's campaign at his website or contact staff person Curtis Grima for San Jose area activities.

June 2010

Luis Buhler, Publisher

Congratulations to all our Republican nominees! In June, two local Republican office holders won their re-election campaigns:

· Pete Constant for San Jose City Council
· Laurie Smith for Santa Clara County Sheriff

Republicans are also in a great position to pick up two more county offices this fall:

· Former Los Gatos Mayor Mike Wasserman finished first in his race for Santa Clara County Supervisor
· Concord City Councilman Mark Peterson is now the front runner in the race for Contra Costa County District Attorney

The top priority now for Bay Area Republicans is to hold the 15th State Senate District where former GOP Assembly Leader Sam Blakeslee finished first in the recent special election. The runoff takes place on August 17 so please consider supporting Sam with your time and financial contribution. Here is his website.

Finally, I am pleased to announce that Dan Sahagun won his write in campaign to serve as the Republican nominee in San Jose's Congressional District 16. This means that Republicans will contest every partisan seat in the San Francisco Bay Area. Congratulations and thanks to everyone who made this possible!

Best regards,