Paul Kozakiewicz: Yee is Best Choice to Serve in Assembly

There is one candidate in the upcoming election that is head-and-shoulders above the rest.

San Francisco Supervisor Leland Yee is running for a seat in the Assembly. I'm confident he will serve with distinction.

I had my first opportunity to work closely with Yee several years ago during the battle to rebuild the Central Freeway. During weekly meetings concerning the fate of the campaign, I saw an intelligent and determined man who was not afraid to stake out a position and then fight for it. (Although the measure lost citywide, some 60 percent of the Richmond and 65 percent of the Sunset supported keeping the freeway.)

Recently, Yee was elected supervisor by voters in the Sunset District. He beat out several good candidates because he worked hard, kept his promises to the best of his ability and refused to kowtow to political interests.

After drawing a two-year term in District 4, he announced it was time to move on and give other up-and-coming politicians a chance.

As a member of the school board and then elected citywide to a seat on the board of supervisors, Yee always rolled up his sleeves and tackled the tough issues. Recently he initiated action at the supervisors to urge the state to adopt a more realistic portrayal in textbooks of war atrocities that have been committed by the Japanese against the Chinese during the first half of the 20th century.

Yee also tries to hold the school board's feet to the fire concerning bond expenditures and promises made to the community, including the rebuilding of the Parkside School. He has held board hearings and threatened to withhold financial aid the city gives to the school district unless it lives up to its promises to the public.

Yee also supported the sunshine ordinance, and the city's adherence to its provisions, and he believes in the most "transparent" government possible. That is good for democracy.

I supported Yee during his run for supervisor in 2000 and I endorse him now to become a California Assemblyman. In Sacramento he will follow the good work of Assemblyman Kevin Shelley representing the interests of the 12th Assembly District, which includes the Richmond, Sunset and Parkside districts.

The election March 5 is the Democratic primary. The winner of that contest almost always wins the general election in November, 2002 because the 12th Assembly District is so heavily populated with Democrats.

Please vote for Leland Yee.

Other Noteworthy Candidates

There are several candidates running for the Democratic County Central Committee that I have known for a while who would do a good job serving the interests of Democrats.

David Heller is the president of the Greater Geary Boulevard Merchants Association and a member in the Masons and Lions community-service organizations.

Heller is working hard to improve business in the Geary commercial corridor in light of a recession and the events of Sept. 11. I have had the opportunity to work with Heller on a number of projects and when the job needs to get done, Heller finds a way to do it. (To find out more about the Geary merchants, see Heller's column on page 5.)

I met Mathew Tuchow at Alamo Elementary School, where both of our children go to school and Tuchow is a member of the Alamo Foundation.

Tuchow is an attorney who is involved with the Democratic Party on a statewide basis, serving on its executive board and platform committee. He is a "progressive" who wants to work to improve the lot of the common man, an admirable goal, and improve voter outreach to diversify and strengthen the Democratic Party.

Tuchow is also a member of the Planning Association for the Richmond and member of the Rec. and Park Department's Open Space Advisory Committee. He is endorsed by Supervisors Jake McGoldrick and Leland Yee.

I met Laurence "Larry" Yee on various campaign trails over the years, including the fight to rebuild the Central Freeway.

Over time I got the opportunity to meet other members of his family, including his daughter Lauren, a senior at Lowell High School who has been writing for the Richmond Review and Sunset Beacon newspapers since last summer.

If you're like me, you don't always know 12 people to vote for to serve on the Central Committee. Now you're three votes closer. Heller, Tuchow and Yee isn't an accounting firm, but three good choices to serve on the city's Democratic County Central Committee.

Paul Kozakiewicz is the editor of the Richmond Review and Sunset Beacon newspapers.