5th District Supervisor Lynda Hopkins elected chair of the Board of Supervisors
Also: Priority setting meeting for the Board of Supervisors at Sebastopol Center for the Arts on Jan. 10 at 9 am
Fifth District Supervisor Lynda Hopkins was elected as chair of the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors for 2025 on Tuesday, Jan. 7, in a unanimous vote of the five-member body. She succeeded the board’s outgoing chair, Supervisor David Rabbitt. Supervisor Rebecca Hermosillo was elected vice chair, and Supervisor James Gore was named chair pro-tem.
Supervisor Hopkins, who was unopposed in her 5th District bid for a third term last March, pledged to uphold the community’s values after she was sworn into office by her three children.
After her election, she gave the following short speech:
2016 when I was first elected, I was elected on the same night that Donald Trump was also first elected. Emotionally speaking, I will say it was a bit of a rollercoaster. And this past November, I sort of felt a sense of deja vu/PTSD. Here we go again.
But you know, there are two messages that we need to take very seriously from the November election. Number one, people are frustrated with government. They perceive government as, at best, unhelpful or useless. At worst, they think that we are a corrupt ring on society that is antithetical to everything that they value, and a majority of the country wanted change. Although we are blue county here in Sonoma County, we are not immune to that sentiment or to that desire or to that frustration that we see in people.
Number two, for the next four years, we can’t count on Washington D.C. to respect our autonomy or our values. I’m very proud to serve on a board that supports immigrants and refugees, women and the LGBTQIA community, a board that believes in climate change and environmental protection. Just as importantly, we unequivocally oppose racism, white supremacy and hatred. Unfortunately, people who espouse racism, sexism, homophobia, people who don't believe in climate change—they will be in the halls of power nationally. But we cannot permit racism, sexism, xenophobia, homophobia or climate denialism to take root in our community.
Since the election, I have personally experienced neo-Nazi, white supremacist outbursts because I am a public official and because I am friends with someone who is Jewish. Now is not the time to shrink away from our friends. Now is the time to stand with them, to stand up for them, and again, in front of them, if you need to. We don’t know what this year will bring. But no matter what, we have to take care of each other here in Sonoma County.
Which brings me back to people. You know, when some people look at government, I think they just see a faceless bureaucracy—this institution that feels unassailable. But because I work where I do, when I look at government I see more than 4,000 people who work here in the county of Sonoma. I see people who went into public service for a reason, to make their community a better place, to patch potholes, to improve public safety, to plan effective communities, to create new parks, to craft better policy, to make sure taxpayer dollars are being spent effectively, to protect our environment, to support small businesses.
As chair, my biggest goal is to prove that government works. I have seen us move mountains in the middle of disasters. I have seen us cut through red tape to deliver real results for our community. I have seen us take care of and protect the most vulnerable members of our society. We need to do more of all of that.
We need to remember that taxpayers are not only our constituents, they are our customers, and we need to focus on customer service, on meaningful human-to-human interaction, so that people remember that government is made of people who care and people who deliver results to their community.
So this year, let’s double down on my favorite phrase, “community engagement.” Let’s make government the best that it can be. Let’s show people that we have their backs, and that we will work, not only for them, but with them to make their communities a better place.
And we can start with our next meeting this Friday, January 10, where we are hoping that the community will come and participate in our priority setting for the year.
Now, I can’t remember who said this to me. I want to attribute it to David Rabbitt, because it sounds like him, and he told me, “Don’t get too excited. The chair just runs the meeting.” So that’s true, and the five of us are a team. So to my colleagues, which also include the CEO and county council, I just want to say that sometimes you all might drive me crazy, but I deeply respect each and every one of you. I am so honored to serve with people who are smart and capable and care and truly come to work every day trying to do the best that they can, not just for their communities, but for the entire county. I know that you all want to make government better, and I also want to make sure that all of your communities’ needs are met, so that we can all focus on those big battles, on those big priorities for the county as a whole.
I also just want to say that I think we’re extraordinarily lucky on this board of supervisors. Our differences are relatively minor in the grand scheme of things, and it doesn’t mean that we’re always going to have 5-0 votes, but the other thing that I really value is that I think we can actually be a model of civil disagreement here on this board. So here is to disagreeing civilly, to actually making compromises in the benefit of the community, and to, at the end of the day, showing that politicians can treat each other, not just with respect but actually in a friendly manner, actually in a respectful manner, because I think that that’s what we need more of. And I’m really grateful to serve with all of you, because I believe that you all embody that.
I just want to start to sort of also say ‘First Latina ever on the board of supervisors! Congratulations!’ [Hopkins gestured to Hermosillo, who got exhuberant cheers and a standing ovation].
So with that, I love y’all, and let’s get to work.
Share your ideas with the Board of Supervisors in Sebastopol today at SebArts at 9 am
The public is invited to offer input on Friday, Jan. 10, at 9 am, when the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors will hold a special board meeting at the Sebastopol Center for the Arts. The meeting will include a discussion of “2025 Calendar Items of Significant Interest,” and there will be an opportunity for you to share your ideas and priorities with the supervisors.
What: Sonoma County Board of Supervisors special meeting
When: Friday, Jan. 10, at 9 a.m.
Where: Sebastopol Center For the Arts, 282 S High St., Sebastopol
“This meeting is a chance for our board to align our priorities and lay the groundwork for the coming year,” said 5th District Supervisor Lynda Hopkins. “We want to hear from as many constituents as possible so that the community’s priorities are truly reflected in the work that we do.”
There is also another Board of Supervisors meeting at SebArts at 1:30 pm that same day, but there will be more opportunity for public input at the 9 am meeting.
Could Ms. Hagar-Rush and/or ST reporters please publish a summary of the Jan 10 BOS meeting in Sebastopol? I'd especially like clarification about whether the BOS presented their 2025 Priority action list at the meeting?
It seemed like they were going to do that but then the meeting was also framed as an opportunity for the public to present input on what the 2025 priorities should be -- if the 2025 Priority list was presented at the meeting, then the meeting was not good faith request for public input, but rather an opportunity for the public to talk and then see how ou4 issues line up with the BOS's 2025 priorities. This makes a difference -- I'm not splitting hairs.
Our Supervisor's words are a little interesting -- she talks a good talk -- but her actions, intentions and expenditures are far more informative and relevant. I waant able to attend the meetong cuz I couldn't find a working Zoom link for the meeting -- the link in the District 5 notice I received just took me to the SC calendar with the agenda for the meeting but no Zoom link.
So it would be helpful to have some unbiased teporting on the meeting from local reporters who attended. That's why I subscribed to Sebastopol Times, to keep informed on local issues. Thank you 🌼