I am running in a June 22 special election to fill the state Senate seat vacated by the appointment of Abel Maldonado as lieutenant governor. My election would add one seat to the Legislative LGBT Caucus, highlight the one state legislator who was married to his longtime partner in 2008, and send back to the Legislature a strong advocate for HIV funding. I have been endorsed by every LGBT group endorsing – from Equality California, the Gay and Lesbian Victory Fund and BAYMEC to the Santa Cruz LGBT Alliance and the Central Coast Stonewall Democrats.
But this election also has statewide significance because this race, along with another one in November, would give Democrats the two votes necessary to get to two-thirds in the state Senate, and keep a minority from trying to gut environmental laws and hurt public education and the human service safety net as the price of their budget vote. I have received the endorsement of every major education organization endorsing – from the California Teachers Association and California Federation of Teachers to the California School Employees Association and the Faculty Association of California Community Colleges.
And this election is also very significant for those who care about California's environment and the threats to California's coastline. With offshore oil drilling and the state's landmark greenhouse gases bill in play, I have been endorsed by the Sierra Club, the California League of Conservation Voters, and Vote the Coast.
The 15th Senate District is a classic gerrymandered district, running from Saratoga and Los Gatos in Santa Clara County, through the Monterey Bay Area and San Luis Obispo County to the city of Santa Maria in Santa Barbara County.
When this district was created in 2001, it had a three-point Republican registration advantage. Now it has a six-and-a-half-point Democratic margin. Barack Obama carried this Senate district 20 points, and Proposition 8 was defeated here by four points. I have a strong shot of winning this race if I can remain competitive in fundraising and on television and in the mail and beat my opponent with a strong grassroots field operation.
Assemblyman Sam Blakeslee, who was the Republican Assembly leader during last year's budget gridlock, is running against me. Last fall, when the governor signed state Senator Mark Leno's (D-San Francisco) bills to create Harvey Milk Day and recognize out-of-state same-sex marriages, a Blakeslee e-mail to his fellow Republicans referred to these bills as "noxious." He has never voted for a gay civil rights bill during his six years in the state Assembly.
When John A. Perez (D-Los Angeles) was elected Assembly speaker earlier this year, Blakeslee was the opposing candidate. It was generally believed that Republicans were uncomfortable casting even a perfunctory vote for an openly gay man, so Blakeslee's name was put into nomination to keep that from happening.
This election is being run under California special election rules, meaning all four candidates (there are also two minor party candidates on the ballot) are competing against each other in the June 22 special election – and if no one gets 50 percent, there will be a runoff on August 17.
There are clear issues that separate myself from my opponent. I support marriage equality; he does not. I have a 25-year record of opposing oil drilling off the California coast; he is a former Exxon employee who supported last year's attempt to jam new drilling through the California Legislature. I supported California's landmark bill on greenhouse gas reduction and he voted and spoke against it. I have either authored or supported every major gay civil rights measure in this past decade – he did not support a single one of them.
I could use your help. I would appreciate spreading the word to any friend, family member, or acquaintance on the Central Coast. There are many people coming to the district to walk precincts or phone bank on the days leading up to the election. And I have to raise over a million dollars by Election Day.
There will be an event in support of my candidacy in San Francisco at the home of Geoff Kors on June 12 – sponsored by Leno, Supervisor Bevan Dufty, city Treasurer Jose Cisneros, San Francisco Democratic Party Chair Aaron Peskin, and Assemblyman Tom Ammiano (D-San Francisco). Log on to www.lairdforsenate.com for more details on that event, to donate or to volunteer.
We can make a strong gain for civil rights, education, and the environment in this Senate race. I ask for your help.
John Laird was elected one of the first openly gay mayors in the United States in 1983 and was one of the first two (along with Mark Leno) openly gay men elected to the California Legislature in 2002, where he chaired the Assembly Budget Committee.