With so many other political stories flying around, a potentially huge story has gone underneath the radar. That being the illness of 4th District Supervisor John Benoit. It could dramatically affect the local political scene.
To begin with, like all Valley residents, I wish Mr. Benoit well as he undergoes chemotherapy. Although a Republican, he is more of a moderate. He was elected to the Assembly in 2002, despite being opposed by the far right fringe of the local GOP led by then State Senator Jim Battin. In 2010, as Supervisor, he survived a far right challenge from former PSPD Police Chief Gary Jeandron who his run bankrolled by the Riverside Sheriffs Association. The election was nasty. In 2014, he easily beat Manny Perez.
What many in the Valley do not understand is that the position of Supervisor is a hugely powerful one. The county has a budget of over 5 billion dollars. The job controls a ton of patronage as well. And the Board only has 5 members. For the 25 years, I have lived here, it has been run by the Riverside County GOP with a figleaf of non-partisanship.
If due to illness, Mr. Benoit is forced to step down, Governor Brown will have the option of filling the seat till elections take place in 2018. Mr. Benoit himself was originally appointed in such a manner by then Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger in 2009, succeeding the late Roy Wilson.
Brown will no doubt appoint a Democrat. If that were to occur, that would be sea change locally. There would be a change in staff. Despite the office allegedly being non-partisan, in reality it is not.
Talking with some local Democrats today, the name I hear over and over again is that of former Assemblyman Manny Perez. As previously mentioned, he ran and lost against Benoit. Perez was term limited after 6 years in the Assembly and currently sits on the Coachella City Council. Coachella is the East Valley hub of Democratic power; home to US Rep Dr. Raul Ruiz, and Assemblyman Eduardo Garcia.
A Perez appointment could rankle some LGBTQ Democrats in the West Valley. They may put forth a candidate like Palm Springs Councilman Geoff Kors or even Cathedral City Councilman Greg Pettis. However the Valley has a huge Hispanic population which has historically been under served by the county. This fact could and should be a major factor in any appointment. It may be a very interesting few months.
Steve Kelly is a Blogger/Broadcaster based in the Coachella Valley. He can be e mailed at svericker12@gmail.com or followed on Twitter at 2skellynj
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