By Miriam Raftery

View full interview, recorded for the East County Magazine Radio Show on KNSJ, by clicking image at left

September 21, 2022 (El Cajon) – El Cajon Mayor Bill Wells has served as Mayor for nine years, and on the City Council and  Planning Commission before that.  A healthcare professional, he brings a unique perspective to issues such as homelessness. He’s running for eelection and this week, sat down for an exclusive interview in which he discussed his accomplishments, key challenges facing the city, and his goals if reelected. He also spoke out on the city’s conflicts with the county over a homeless motel voucher program.

He says his commitment is to "trying to do what’s right" while" listening to everyone's point of view."

Source: Toni Atkins, President Pro Tem, California State Senate

October 1, 2022 (San Diego) – State Senate President pro Tempore Toni G. Atkins (D-San Diego) and Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon (D-Lakewood) released the following statement following Governor Newsom’s proposal to implement a windfall profits tax and his announcement directing the California Air Resources Board to immediately take steps necessary to allow early transition to winter-blend gasoline:

Source:  Senator Brian Jones

September 29, 2022 (Sacramento) - A measure by Senator Brian W. Jones (R-Santee), which will expand the job opportunities for Licensed Vocational Nurses (LVNs), was signed into law last night.

The shallow rental subsidy program is designed to prevent low-income seniors from losing their homes

East County News Service

Photo: Supervisor Anderson greets Cunya Wu, a 102-year-old San Diego resident who joins Serving Seniors for breakfast and lunch daily.

September 28, 2022 (San Diego) – San Diego County’s Board of Supervisors voted unanimously yesterday to establish a rental subsidy pilot program for seniors who are at risk of becoming homeless. This motion came at the recommendation of Supervisors Joel Anderson (District 2) and Terra Lawson-Remer (District 3) earlier this year at the February 8^th, 2022 board meeting to address the crisis of rising senior homelessness.

By Kristen Hwang, CalMatters

CalMatters is a public interest journalism venture committed to explaining how California’s state Capitol works and why it matters

Photo:  an exam room at Planned Parenthood of Orange and San Bernardino Counties’ health center. Image courtesy of Planned Parenthood of Orange and San Bernardino Counties

September 28, 2022 (Sacramento) - California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a package of 12 bills Tuesday, establishing some of the strongest abortion protections in the nation — a direct reaction to the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to overturn federal abortion guarantees earlier this year.

By Miriam Raftery

Photo, right: Councilmembers Phil Ortiz and Steve Goble

September 28, 2022 (El Cajon) – At yesterday’s El Cajon City Council meeting, the Council voted unanimously to create a subcommittee to help draft regulatory policy for motels operating with homeless vouchers. Councilmembers Steve Goble and Phil Ortiz will serve on the subcommittee.

Councilmembers and the City Manager also voiced frustration over problems caused by the county filling up motels in the city with homeless individuals using county-issued vouchers, concerns echoing those raised in a recent press conference. City leaders also expressed disappointment in the county’s failure to respond to complaints and by a threat from the Attorney General demanding that the city rescind warning notices sent to hotels exceeding a city limit on long-term occupancy by homeless instead of short-term travelers.  As ECM reported, the AG accused the city of violating California’s Fair Employment and Housing Act.

The City also made its case that it has done more than its fair share to help the homeless in our region – far more than the county or neighboring cities in East County.

By Miriam Raftery

September 27, 2022 (El Cajon) – On September 20, East County Magazine interviewed Graham  Mitchell, El Cajon’s City Manager. He’s the man behind the curtain who keeps everything running smoothly in the city and on occasion, steps in to troubleshoot when concerns arise. He spoke with us about the city’s concerns over the county placing homeless people into eight motels in El Cajon, what steps the city is taking to help the homeless, as well as some other issues and some positive things happening in El Cajon.

You can hear our full interview recorded for our show in KNSJ radio by clicking the image on the left, or scroll down to read highlights.

By Elijah McKee

September 26, 2022 (Lemon Grove) — “I’ve always felt that if you want to make a difference, you need to get involved,” said Jennifer Mendoza, a Lemon Grove City Councilmember currently serving her second four-year term. “You don’t just sit back and complain, and wait for other people to do things the way you want them to do it — you need to get involved.”

Mendoza, who has announced her bid for re-election, is one of five candidates vying for seats on the Lemon Grove City Council this election year. She officially qualified for the ballot last month, and according to her she has been endorsed by the Mayors of Lemon Grove, Chula Vista and San Diego, as well as her own representatives, Assemblymember Dr. Akilah Weber and Congresswoman Sara Jacobs. 

By Elijah McKee

September 20, 2022 (Lemon Grove) — “Five years or 15 years is not enough time to keep the deed on these to stay affordable,” said Alysson Snow as she laid out her vision for housing developments in Lemon Grove. “I’m looking for things that are at least 50 years. That they can’t do anything with it that’s not affordable until the expiration of those 50 years.” 

Snow leads a newly founded legal clinic through the University of San Diego (USD) called the Housing Rights Project — and she is also one of five candidates vying for open seats on the Lemon Grove City Council this election year. 

She officially qualified for the ballot last month, and has been endorsed by the Spring Valley Democratic Club, the San Diego County Democrats, California State Treasurer Fiona Ma, former San Diego Councilwoman Barbara Bry, as well as several current school board members and city councilmembers. 

By Elijah McKee

September 20, 2022 (Lemon Grove) — “The squeakier wheel gets the oil, right? If you come out and say ‘Hey, this is what we need,’ and you’re persistent, things start to change, remarked ” Jessica “Jessyka” Heredia about virtual access to city meetings. She personally live-streams Lemon Grove City Council meetings on Facebook, while calling for an investment in an official video record.

In an interview with East County Magazine, Heredia reflected, “I get lots of views so I know it’s something that should be done and could be done. And I believe it will be done as a result of me coming and doing that. I’m going to continue to advocate for that regardless of whether I’m elected or not.” 

Heredia officially qualified for the ballot last month, and is now one of five candidates vying for seats on the Lemon Grove City Council this election year. She runs a business in El Cajon that has been in East County for 24 years, sat on the City's Community Advisory Committee (CAC) and the Business Improvement District, and runs the Lemon Grove Support Local social media pages. 

Given the four-year term lengths for councilmembers in Lemon Grove, Jennifer Mendoza is the only current official whose seat could be challenged this year. However, Councilmember Jerry Jones decided to retire after nearly 20 years as a councilmember, creating an open seat and the possibility for two new faces to join the dais. 

For elections within San Diego County this year, every active registered voter will automatically be granted a mail ballot. They will begin being sent out on October 8, and early voting via ballot drop boxes will begin October 10. All in-person poll centers will be open from November 5 through Election Day on November 8. 

In the Lemon Grove field, Councilmember Mendoza has announced her bid for reelection and is the only incumbent in the race. The other four candidates include Heredia, as well as Blanca Brown, Stephanie Klein, and Alysson Snow.  East County Magazine sat down with all five women for in-depth interviews in order to learn more about them and their campaigns. Watch for profiles of all five candidates to be posted in our Communities section for Lemon Grove.

East County News Service

September 23, 2022 (San Diego’s East County) -- The San Diego Regional East County Chamber of Commerce Announces Additional Endorsements for the 2022 General Election.

Below is the full list of local candidates now endorsed by the board of directors (*newly announced candidates are designated with an asterisk):

By Ken Stone, Times of San Diego, a member of the San Diego Online News Association

Photo:  Oscar David Rendon alleges he was assaulted in August 2021. At the urging of a college professor, he reported the incident to San Diego police in March 2022, his lawsuit says. Image via Facebook

September 22, 2022 (San Diego) - A former San Diego City College student body president is accusing local Democratic Party leader Will Rodriguez-Kennedy of sexual assault and also named San Diego Councilman Stephen Whitburn as a defendant.

By Miriam Raftery

September 21, 2022 (New York) – Today, New York Attorney General Leticia James filed a civil fraud lawsuit against former president Donald Trump, his family members and the Trump Organization for alleged financial fraud.

“We’re also making a criminal referral to the U.S. Department of Justice,” James announced. On Twitter, she posted, “There aren’t two sets of laws for people in this nation: former presidents must be held to the same standards as everyday Americans.”

Her office has also referred the matter to the U.S. attorney’s office for the Southern District of New York and to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to investigate possible state and federal criminal laws.

East County News Service

Photo by Miriam Raftery: Will Rodriguez-Kennedy, March 2020 primary night

September 16, 2022 (San Diego) – The  San Diego District Attorney’s office has closed its investigation into alleged sexual assault by County Democratic Party Chairman William Rodriguez-Kennedy.

Rodriguez-Kennedy today issued a statement saying he’d been “cleared of wrongdoing.”  He has been on leave since May, pending the outcome of the investigation.

DA spokeswoman Tanya Sierra on Friday told Times of San Diego, an ECM news partner, “After a thorough review, we determined that no charges could be filed in this case. We do not discuss our charging decisions except to say that we can only file charges when we believe we can prove them beyond a reasonable doubt.”