Green challenger for Dodd in State Senate District 3 race

Write-in campaign is on the rise

(From press release) Karen Nyhus, a Green from Sonoma County, is challenging Bill Dodd (D-Napa) as a write-in to the California State Senate’s Top 2 spot on next week’s primary ballot.

Nyhus, a Stanford grad with a work history in government, education and nonprofits, is challenging Dodd’s status as a self-described “fiscal conservative” for a district that spans her native Sonoma County through Napa, Solano, and Contra Costa, to here in Davis. Nyhus calls Dodd a “blue dog” (conservative Democrat) and points out that he was a registered Republican as recently as 2013.

Running as a Green, she accepts no corporate donations, and think that’s a weak spot for Dodd. “He has taken money from the wine industry and PG&E, and it shows in his actions,” she wrote.

He made news for leaving a hearing for fire victims to attend a wine-industry fundraiser.[1]

Most recently, Dodd has proposed making Highway 37 into a toll road.

Nyhus, who has a graduate degree in Environmental Science and Policy and runs her own business consulting to nonprofits, has been an activist for climate justice, worked against police brutality in Sonoma County, and supported workers organizing for better wages.

She’s also fun: she drums with Musicians’ Action Group, a Bay Area political street band.

She says the fact that Greens take no corporate money mean voters can count on her to “stay clean.” “That’s something you can’t get with the two major parties,” she said, “so if you want real change, vote clean – vote Green – and write me in now, so you can do that in November.”

Nyhus is up against two other write-ins for the November slot: a Republican and a “no party preference” candidate. If she makes it to Top 2, she promises to give Dodd a run for his money.

“We’re ready,” she said. “And District 3 voters are ready for something better than Bill Dodd.”

Be sure to fill in the box as well as writing in the name.

Voters can write in candidates wherever there is a “write-in” space on the ballot. They must also fill in the rectangle/oval with ink to indicate they are voting for the person whose name they write.

[1] https://.consumerwatchdog.org/energy/senator-dodd-busted-shutting-down-wildfire-hearings-rush-fundraiser-utility-lobbyists