The Ventura County Democratic Central Committee has elected former congressional candidate Jill Martinez of Oxnard its new chairwoman, replacing Oxnard attorney Joe O’Neill.

Martinez was elected by acclamation and will fill the remaining one year of O’Neill’s term.  O’Neill resigned to devote time to a new teaching appointment he will take on in addition to his law practice.

Jill is the former Democratic candidate for the United States House of Representatives in California’s 24th congressional district.  A Presbyterian minister, Martinez has worked for the Ventura County Area Housing Authority and taught professional ethics at California State University, Stanislaus and was co-host of the bi-lingual television program, “La Voz de la Raza” for ABC’s Stockton, CA affiliate.  In Stockton, she also worked as a City Civil Service Commissioner and a Police Chaplain.

One of her major platforms has been addressing poor housing conditions on the Central Coast of California. She has also expressed concern over health care, transportation, port security, the Iraq War, and globalization.  Martinez holds a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology from the University of Hawaii, and a Master of Divinity from San Francisco Theological Seminary.

Lilly Ledbetter, the national heroine who was the inspiration for the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, has endorsed Susan Jordan in her bid for the California 35th Assembly District seat.

The Fair Pay Act was the first piece of legislation President Barack Obama signed. Ledbetter, who spoke at the 2008 Democratic National Convention, fought for 11 years to better the lives of women everywhere through an amendment of the Civil Rights Act.

Ledbetter joins a growing list of women’s groups and electeds supporting Jordan. Former State Senator Sheila Kuehl and former Superintendent of Public Instruction Delaine Eastin, who have both endorsed Jordan, will headline a fundraiser for the candidate on November 14 at the Santa Barbara home of Betty Stephens, a long-time national Democratic activist.

For information on the fundraiser, also hosted by Pierce & Keely Brosnan, Julia Louis-Dreyfus & Brad Hall
, Dan Emmett
, Judith Hopkinson, Lillian Lovelace
, Assemblywoman Fiona Ma, Sara Miller McCune, and Susan Rose & Allan Ghitterman go here.

Other prominent women who have served in office and have endorsed Jordan include Assemblymembers Anna Caballero, Mary Hayashi, Bonnie Lowenthal, Fiona Ma, and Mary Salas; California Inspector General Laura Chick; Santa Barbara Supervisor Janet Wolf; Former Santa Barbara Supervisor Susan Rose; Former Santa Barbara Mayors Sheila Lodge and Harriet Miller; Oxnard City Councilmember Dr. Irene Pinkard; Ventura County Community College District Trustee Cheryl Heitmann; and Former Oxnard Mayor Jane Tolmach. The National Women’s Political Caucus and the Santa Barbara Women’s Political Committee have also endorsed.

Susan Jordan, a Santa Barbara resident, is an award-winning environmental leader, businesswoman, health advocate and mother with 35 years of real-life experience meeting a payroll, managing a business, and raising a child while dedicating her career to the betterment of her community.

For more information, email jordan4assembly@gmail.com.

The Camarillo club’s reputation as Ventura County’s undisputed leader among Democrats in knowing how to get down and have fun remains intact in the happy afterglow of the ‘Fun’ Raiser at Steve and Carolyn Crandall’s home on Saturday, October 24th.  Party officials and candidates from Ventura and Santa Barbara joined the club in it’s annual fundraiser.

Food, drink and cordial conversation were the order of the evening. People of like mind, all engaged in making progressive change happen in many ways, shared their passions on things political and otherwise over tasty delights prepared by members.  Many also went down to the garden to dance or play rhythm instruments to the spirited but unamplified tunes of Watermelon Pie that wafted out across the yard and up through the boards of the deck.

Events co-chair Mahmood Boloorchi made good on his challenge promise to cut off his hair, if either 100 people showed up or the income for the evening reached $2,500. As the evening was winding down, Sandi Gummermann gleefully announced that the money threshold had been crossed, and like his publicity-shy counterpart Stephen Colbert, Mahmood sat down to keep his pledge.

Mercifully, Lolita Valianos had some barbering experience, so she finished the job, repairing the spirited but amateur efforts of other volunteers, and Mahmood emerged from the ordeal with a very presentable buzz cut. Thanks, Mahmood, for the offer and for being such a good soldier!

The Camarillo club’s reputation as Ventura County’s undisputed leader among Democrats in knowing how to get down and have fun remains intact in the happy afterglow of the ‘Fun’ Raiser at Steve and Carolyn Crandall’s home on Saturday, October 24th.  Party officials and candidates from Ventura and Santa Barbara joined the club in it’s annual fundraiser.

Food, drink and cordial conversation were the order of the evening. People of like mind, all engaged in making progressive change happen in many ways, shared their passions on things political and otherwise over tasty delights prepared by members.  Many also went down to the garden to dance or play rhythm instruments to the spirited but unamplified tunes of Watermelon Pie that wafted out across the yard and up through the boards of the deck.

Events co-chair Mahmood Boloorchi made good on his challenge promise to cut off his hair, if either 100 people showed up or the income for the evening reached $2,500. As the evening was winding down, Sandi Gummermann gleefully announced that the money threshold had been crossed, and like his publicity-shy counterpart Stephen Colbert, Mahmood sat down to keep his pledge.

Mercifully, Lolita Valianos had some barbering experience, so she finished the job, repairing the spirited but amateur efforts of other volunteers, and Mahmood emerged from the ordeal with a very presentable buzz cut. Thanks, Mahmood, for the offer and for being such a good soldier!

“The last thing Californians need in a U.S. Senator is a failed CEO who was fired by her last employer after taking $100 million for herself.

“In these tough times, hard-working Californians need a Senator who will fight to create jobs, not a millionaire former executive who laid off more than 28,000 Americans and shipped jobs overseas.

“Carly Fiorina may have millions to spend on a Senatorial race, but Californians will not be snookered by yet another millionaire neophyte in search of a new hobby.

“Maybe Fiorina’s ill-advised run for Senate will finally inspire her to take the time to vote.

“Senator Boxer and the California Democratic Party will be ready for Assemblymember Chuck DeVore, Fiorina or whoever wins the Republican primary in 2010.”

While conservatives sought to portray victories in gubernatorial races in Virginia and New Jersey on Tuesday as a referendum on President Obama’s administration and a harbinger of voter attitudes for the 2010 midterm elections, Democrats picked up the only two congressional seats up for election.

In a special election to fill the Congressional seat vacated by Rep. Ellen Tauscher, D-Walnut Creek, California Lt Governor John Garamendi defeated Republican David Harmer in the 10th District by a wide margin.  Lawyer and retired Air Force Capt. Bill Owens won the special election Tuesday in northern New York’s 23rd CD in which the Republican candidate withdrew over the weekend under pressure from Sarah Palin, Glenn Beck, the party’s right wing and GOP heavyweights who endorsed the Conservative Party nominee. The win by Owens turns a red district blue.

While conservatives sought to portray victories in gubernatorial races in Virginia and New Jersey on Tuesday as a referendum on President Obama’s administration and a harbinger of voter attitudes for the 2010 midterm elections, Democrats picked up the only two congressional seats up for election.

In a special election to fill the Congressional seat vacated by Rep. Ellen Tauscher, D-Walnut Creek, California Lt Governor John Garamendi defeated Republican David Harmer in the 10th District by a wide margin.  Lawyer and retired Air Force Capt. Bill Owens won the special election Tuesday in northern New York’s 23rd CD in which the Republican candidate withdrew over the weekend under pressure from Sarah Palin, Glenn Beck, the party’s right wing and GOP heavyweights who endorsed the Conservative Party nominee. The win by Owens turns a red district blue.

Former Vice President Al Gore’s new book ‘OUR CHOICE: A Plan to Solve the Climate Crisis’ hits the bookstores today.  In the book ‘Inconvenient Truth’, Al Gore unequivocally laid out the case that climate change is the greatest challenge of our time. With ‘OUR CHOICE’, he gives us the tools to solve it.

Gore explains how solar, wind, geothermal, biomass and nuclear energies work and lays out the pros, cons, and latest technological developments of each source along with a state-of-the-art analysis of carbon capture and sequestration technologies.

Gore looks at how deforestation, soil erosion and degradation and population issues are contributing to the climate crisis and discusses the strategies being undertaken to counter their effects. He makes sense of the arguments on both sides of the carbon sequestration discussion and outlines the latest and most effective efficiency measures that both big business and everyday people can begin to implement.

In ‘OUR CHOICE’ Gore argues that one of America’s most challenging obstacles to overcoming the climate crisis is the country’s political culture. He examines how political impediments have stood in the way of progress and turned global warming into a partisan issue. These include the use of lavishly financed misinformation campaigns aimed at misleading the public about the true nature and severity of the climate crisis — a technique pioneered by tobacco companies — as well as the proliferation of media outlets who suggest a false symmetry between scientific understanding and political opinion.

Former Vice President Al Gore’s new book ‘OUR CHOICE: A Plan to Solve the Climate Crisis’ hits the bookstores today.  In the book ‘Inconvenient Truth’, Al Gore unequivocally laid out the case that climate change is the greatest challenge of our time. With ‘OUR CHOICE’, he gives us the tools to solve it.

Gore explains how solar, wind, geothermal, biomass and nuclear energies work and lays out the pros, cons, and latest technological developments of each source along with a state-of-the-art analysis of carbon capture and sequestration technologies.

Gore looks at how deforestation, soil erosion and degradation and population issues are contributing to the climate crisis and discusses the strategies being undertaken to counter their effects. He makes sense of the arguments on both sides of the carbon sequestration discussion and outlines the latest and most effective efficiency measures that both big business and everyday people can begin to implement.

In ‘OUR CHOICE’ Gore argues that one of America’s most challenging obstacles to overcoming the climate crisis is the country’s political culture. He examines how political impediments have stood in the way of progress and turned global warming into a partisan issue. These include the use of lavishly financed misinformation campaigns aimed at misleading the public about the true nature and severity of the climate crisis — a technique pioneered by tobacco companies — as well as the proliferation of media outlets who suggest a false symmetry between scientific understanding and political opinion.