Participation sport

On March 3, we will be holding a Presidential Primary Election. In addition to choosing candidates for President of the United States, we will also be choosing our representatives to the Solano County Board of Supervisors in Districts 1,2, and 5.

District 1 consists of all of Vallejo north of Georgia Street, while District 2 includes

Vallejo south of Georgia Street, Benicia, Cordelia, Green Valley, and parts of Suisun. District 5 consists of the northern part of Vacaville.

Do people know what they are voting for? Do we understand what is entailed in the job of supervisor?

According to the mission statement listed on the Solano County Board of Supervisors’ web page, “As the governing body for Solano County, the Board is responsible for planning and provision of services related to public needs as required by state and federal law including: adopting the annual budget, adopting county ordinances, setting policies, confirming appointments of most non-elected officials, and assisting citizens in solving problems and addressing local concerns.”

Further investigation of the site reveals that our supervisor from District 1 serves on 26 different intergovernmental bodies, the District 2 Supervisor serves on 21, and District 5 supervisor serves on 20. The Supervisors represent the interest of the county and the people living in their districts at many agencies and commissions that affect air quality, water quality and availability, land use, housing, homelessness, energy, environmental protections, mental health, transportation, waste water disposal and flooding, foster care and other services for children, and senior citizen issues.

While you might not see your Supervisor around town ( probably because they are in a meeting), they are essential to providing appropriate and adequate services to our community.

To find out more about who is running for office in our local districts, come to one of the forums being held near the end of the month. The forums are all co-sponsored by the League of Women Voters Solano County:

• Wednesday, Jan. 29, 7 p.m. — Dona Benicia Room, Benicia Library, 350 East L St. CoSponsored with AAUW.

• Wednesday, Feb. 5, 7 p.m. — Cal Maritime Anchor Center, 255 Georgia St., Vallejo. Co-Sponsored with the Vallejo Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority.

Democracy is not a spectator sport! — Gayle Vaughan/Chair, Voter

Service Committee League of Women Voters

Solano County