3rd District race tightens with fourth candidate

With the official filing period for candidates just weeks away, former Santa Barbara County planning commissioner and ex-Solvang Councilman David Smyser appears poised to enter what would be a four-person race for 3rd District county supervisor.

Smyser could not be reached for comment this week, but has privately told his political confidants he intends to run for the seat being vacated by Supervisor Brooks Firestone. He also strongly indicated those intentions in an e-mail sent to likely supporters in early December.

The recipients were invited to a Dec. 4 reception at the Firestone Taproom and Brewery in Buellton. “The reception is an opportunity to informally ‘kick off' my campaign for 3rd District supervisor,” explained the e-mail, signed “Dave.”

When contacted Thursday, Firestone said he couldn't say for sure whether Smyser, a lawyer he picked to be the 3rd District planning commissioner in July 2006, now will try to succeed him on the Board of Supervisors.

The politically and geographically diverse district, which stretches west from the Santa Ynez Valley to Vandenberg Air Force Base and south to UCSB and Isla Vista, has traditionally been the five-member county Board of Supervisors' swing vote on issues that pit North County and South Coast interests against each other.

Smyser resigned from the Planning Commission in early September, after a 14-month stint, saying he wanted to spend more time on his law practice. A few weeks later, Firestone unexpectedly announced that he will not seek re-election when his term expires at the end of this year.

Candidates vying for Firestone's seat will appear on the ballot in a June 3 election for county offices, including three of five supervisorial seats. Also up for re-election are 4th District Supervisor Joni Gray and 1st District Supervisor Salud Carbajal.

Gray, who will be seeking another four-year term in June, said she expects Smyser to enter the 3rd District race. So does former county supervisor and Santa Ynez Valley rancher Willy Chamberlin.

“He's going to run,” Chamberlin predicted, saying that was the clear impression Smyser left with the rancher and several others at a private meeting in mid-December.

That was echoed by Mike Stoker, a former county supervisor who said he immediately and strongly urged Smyser to run after Firestone made his announcement.

“I'm fairly confident David (Smyser) will make a run for 3rd District supervisor,” Stoker said Thursday, “based on what I know and what I've heard. I would not be surprised if he announces that within the next couple of weeks.”

Judy Franzen, a political aide of Smyser, would not confirm that he's tossing his hat into the ring of candidates, but said he expects to publicly disclose his plans within days.

Three other people have said they definitely plan to run for the 3rd District seat: another former county planning commissioner, Doreen Farr of Solvang; longtime South Coast resident and political activist Dr. David Bearman; and businessman Steve Pappas of Los Olivos.

All said their plans to run won't be swayed by a Smyser candidacy.

What has been a quiet contest so far moves from hopeful announcements to official paperwork soon.

Candidates seeking to defray some or all of the $845 filing fee for the supervisorial race can gather “in-lieu petition” signatures worth 25 cents apiece from now through Feb. 21. Candidacy papers can be filed as early as Feb. 11, but no later than a March 7 deadline, county elections officials said.

Pappas, who unsuccessfully ran for the 3rd District seat against Firestone and others in 2004, said his plans to run again don't hinge on what Smyser does. “It makes no difference to my plans to run at all,” he said Thursday.

It won't deter Farr either, she said Thursday. “I'm just moving forward,” she added, “running a strong grassroots campaign.”

Bearman, when contacted Friday, said he's running regardless of Smyser's apparent plans to enter the race. “I always assumed somebody would try to pick up Firestone's mantle,” he remarked. “I'm not surprised it's Smyser.”

Chuck Schultz can be reached at 925-2691, Ext. 2241, or cschultz@santamariatimes.com.

January 6, 2008