Rodoni going for a ride?
It's clear the libertarian maverick and 2nd District Supervisor Roger Rodoni has made some waves during his tenure, so much so that he's now facing two challengers: One from Southern Humboldt, which in some ways feels neglected by Rodoni; and another from Fortuna, which is obviously Rodoni's strongest base of support.
A question has to be asked, however. Since both challengers appear to come from the left of Rodoni — Estelle Fennell and Clendenen are hardly right-wingers — will the Rodoni opposition effectively silence itself? If the left-of-center vote is divided among two candidates, shouldn't that bode well for the Rancher?
A similar effect seems to have gone a long way recently in preserving the job of Harbor Commissioner Roy Curless. And, as we already know, both Curless and Rodoni look damn spanky in cowboy hats. Maybe that's the real secret behind Humboldt County electoral success, at least south of what some might consider Humboldt County's cultural Mason-Dixon Line.
Where would you put that line? I'm thinking somewhere south of Fields Landing, and north of Loleta. College of the Redwoods, maybe?
Comments
No, the more candidates (left, right or center) the more likely that Roger does not win at the primary and is forced into a run off. You need to get people out to vote in June and that means a candidate that each voter can get excited about.
This is not like the harbor race.
Posted by: No Name | December 15, 2007 08:05 AM
The line should be at the Scotia Mill.
Posted by: mresquan | December 15, 2007 09:30 AM
Rodoni does have some baggage in South County, the Tooby Ranch case being tops. Any opposing candidate should pepper Roger with questions asking why he has consistently voted to pursue the County's disastrous legal persecution of Bob McKee. This boondoggle has a lot of the South County constituency riled.
Rodoni also provided the third vote behind closed doors to secretly payoff Tamara Falor. Another vulnerable area a challenger should hammer away at.
And Roger has that sweetheart deal going with Palco and his appointment to the Planning Commission is being investigated by the FPPC for failing to disclose a possible conflict of interest with Palco. Given the mistrust in Humboldt of Palco now, this could also be a real liability for Roger.
Posted by: Andrew Bird | December 15, 2007 10:40 AM
I think as much as anything people realize Roger is a dinosaur and such juvenile nonsense as his tirade against Wooley when Roger used the terms "mid-level bureaucratic whore” and "bitch-slap". will come back to haunt him. The more competition he has the more opportunities to point out we need more intelligence and integrity in the job than Roger can deliver.
Posted by: Hayduke | December 16, 2007 11:45 AM