Vote Dillingham for auditor-controller

I’m writing to support Cheryl Dillingham for Auditor-Controller. To put it bluntly, the incumbent is costing the county millions of dollars, terrorizing her staff, and publicly accusing county employees of committing crimes without evidence. There will be a substantial mess to untangle, and I’m glad that somebody with Cheryl’s exceptional qualifications is willing to take on that challenge.

If you care about schools, roads, public health, economic development, First Five Humboldt — I can name a dozen more — their funding is at serious risk because of the Auditor-Controller. Elections have consequences, and the problem with the “burn it all down” candidate is that sometimes they actually do try to burn it all down. Those millions of dollars are not just numbers on a ledger. That’s real harm to real people, to all of us. I’m a lifelong liberal, and I believe strongly that liberals and Democrats must stand for good government. Fortunately, Cheryl is a Democrat with bipartisan support, so for me she’s the obvious choice.

Cheryl has decades of experience, government accounting expertise, and proven management abilities. In addition, she actually knows how to catch fraud and has done so during her career. The incumbent lacks those traits and the consequences for Humboldt County have been severe. Another four years of mismanagement will be even worse. Now is the time to vote for competence and professionalism. I implore everyone to vote for Cheryl Dillingham on June 7. — Todd Rowe, Eureka