The Fresno Bee
Magsig enters race for supervisor
Clovis City Council member to challenge Waterston.
By Ely Portillo / The Fresno Bee
08/15/07 04:25:34
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A third prominent Republican on Tuesday joined the race to be Fresno
County District 5 supervisor, setting up a battle that is drawing big
money and could steal the limelight from other contests, some local
observers say.
Nathan Magsig, a Clovis City Council member since 2001, announced that
he will challenge two-term incumbent Supervisor Bob Waterston.
The other candidate is Debbie Poochigian, a local political organizer
who is the wife of former state legislator Chuck Poochigian and
daughter of longtime supervisor Deran Koligian.
The result, local Republicans say, is likely to be a close race in
District 5, which covers parts of east Fresno and the foothills and
high mountains in the county’s eastern third.
The prominence of both challengers means they have as much clout with
many donors as the incumbent, said Michael Der Manouel Jr., chairman
of the conservative Lincoln Club of Fresno County.
"The fundraising advantage enjoyed by incumbents isn’t there for Bob
Waterston," he said.
Waterston has raised more than $208,000, Magsig has about $215,000 and
Poochigian has almost $170,000.
"You won’t have an incumbent who can win just by outspending
challengers, so whoever wins this race will really earn it," Der
Manouel said.
Magsig said that the candidates’ large war chests and high name
recognition mean they won’t have to spend much money getting voters
familiar with who they are.
That leaves them more time to focus on the issues.
"The voters will have a clear choice and know who the candidates are,"
he said.
One major issue is likely to be the county’s revenue problems. Some
Fresno County agencies have taken steep budget cuts in the past year
as sales and property tax revenues did not rise quickly enough to
cover costs.
How to plan for expected population growth will also probably figure
prominently in the campaigns, Magsig said.
The other two candidates said they’re confident about their chances in
a three-way contest.
"I’m used to running against people with names," said Waterston, who
defeated Mike Reynolds, a prominent supporter of California’s Three
Strikes law, in 2000. "It’ll fire me up again."
Poochigian said that even though she hasn’t run for an elected
position, she knows her Fresno County politics.
"I think I’m the outsider, running against two incumbent politicians,"
she said. "I’m not concerned — I’ve lived in Fresno County for 50
years."
And the fundraising is far from over, as the candidates fight to
secure support and key endorsements.
For instance, Poochigian is having a $500-per-person dinner in
September, co-hosted by members of the Clovis Unified school board.
But Republican activist Tal Cloud doesn’t think the three candidates
will maintain that breakneck pace as the June primary election nears.
The Fresno mayor’s job is up for grabs, and there probably will be
competitive City Council races to focus on as well. Until three months
before the primary elections, those candidates are forbidden by city
law from raising campaign money.
"Once that date comes, it’s going to be real difficult" for county
candidates to keep donations coming, Cloud said.
There has been enough early activity in the race to ensure that
Waterston, Poochigian and Magsig will have plenty of cash, Cloud said.
"Between them, they’ll spend a million on the primary alone," he
forecast.
The fierce competition among the three could make fundraising more
difficult in contests that aren’t viewed as being as competitive.
"Some of the less-interesting [races] might have trouble attracting
money," Der Manouel said.
Local political consultant Mark Scozzari isn’t so sure about that.
"I don’t see it having an impact on any other county or city races,"
he said. "The people who donate often budget."
But Scozzari agrees that focus on a race with three well-known
candidates could divert attention from unknown candidates in other
contests.
"Challengers may have a little bit more of a difficult time attracting
interest from people," he said.
With three viable contenders, it’s possible none of them would win
more than half the votes in the June primary.
In that case, the top two vote-getters would go head to head in
another election, a situation Der Manouel said is likely.
"I fully anticipate it will go to a runoff," he said. "You’ve got a
stronger field of candidates lining up for [Waterston’s] seat than you
have lining up for any other position in the county. It’s going to be
a pretty exciting race."
The reporter can be reached at [email protected] or(559)
441-6360.