Supervisor candidates Withrow, Madrigal spar – but not at scheduled debate

In a move that defies his low-key style, Supervisor Terry Withrow has gone on the offensive in his bid for a third term on the Stanislaus County Board of Supervisors.

Withrow said he was eager to discuss his accomplishments and debate his opponent at a recent League of Women Voters candidates forum. But there were two no-shows at the Oct. 10 forum held at Tenth Street Place.

As expected, state Sen. Tom Berryhill, who’s seeking a different seat on the board, stayed home for health reasons. Withrow’s opponent, Modesto Councilman Tony Madrigal, also skipped the traditional election season event. A statement read on his behalf at the forum said Madrigal needed to attend a committee meeting on a traffic improvement project in west Modesto.

“I would love to debate Tony,” said Withrow, who has served two terms in District 3, representing the west side of Modesto, Salida and Wood Colony.

Withrow is running on his record of accomplishments and says the county’s fiscal health has outshone Modesto’s financial struggles during Madrigal’s tenure.

He said he’s seeking another term to continue efforts to address homelessness and battle a state plan to wrest water from local irrigation districts, among other reasons.

Madrigal said this week he had a good excuse for not attending the League of Women Voters forum, which is held to bring out the viewpoints of candidates for local office and allow residents to pose questions. “This was a very important meeting and I was fulfilling my council member duties,” Madrigal said, noting the meeting was about the Paradise Road project designed for road, bicycle and safety improvements.

If the two candidates had squared off at the forum, Withrow mostly likely would have cited the county’s solid financial position and compared it with Modesto’s budgetary struggles. Since recovering from the recession, the county has eliminated its debt, replenished reserves and is hiring deputies to fill gaps in the Sheriff’s Department, Withrow said.

Madrigal said he has worked with colleagues on the council to increase the city’s reserves, from a paltry $3 million to $18 million. The city still has challenges with employee retirement liabilities, as do many cities. “For the supervisor to take credit for the entire budget of the Board of Supervisors is as disingenuous as blaming one council member for all the issues with the city budget,” Madrigal said this week.

Withrow is a county leader who brought together different sectors to agree on a county groundwater ordinance implemented in 2014. He also has spearheaded the Focus on Prevention efforts that aim to reduce homelessness, strengthen families and break generational cycles of crime and addiction.

The supervisor has rallied local forces to fight against a State Water Board proposal to double the amount of water left in rivers for fish, which would force cuts to water deliveries for farmers in the Northern San Joaquin Valley. He believes his leadership is needed in a third term for resisting the state plan and winning that fight.

“We have to get through this water crisis,” Withrow said. “If it does not go our way it will cripple us economically.”

Madrigal said he has fought the state’s water plan from the beginning and was one of the three council members chosen to speak at a state hearing in Modesto on the river flow proposal. “Not only did I testify, I organized people to show up with signs to illustrate the faces of the people affected if they take our water,” the councilman said.

In another priority in a third term, Withrow said the county needs to keep working on hiring deputies and improving public safety.

Withrow has painted his opponent as a local politician who takes undeserved credit for projects and fails to address needs in his district. In one critical mailer, Withrow tried to persuade voters that the alternative to his re-election is unacceptable.

The incumbent has rounded up the high-profile endorsements, including fellow county supervisors, Sheriff Adam Christianson, state legislators Anthony Cannella and Adam Gray, and retired county chief executive officer Stan Risen. But he also has support from Modesto council members Mani Grewal, Jenny Kenoyer, Doug Ridenour and Bill Zoslocki, not to mention the Modesto City Firefighters Association.

Madrigal is endorsed by the Stanislaus Democratic Party, Central Valley Democratic Club and various labor groups and also received a recent plug that slighted the conservative incumbent. The Stanislaus Taxpayers Association is backing Madrigal. In an email this week, association leader Dave Thomas claimed that Withrow has too often sought a government solution for problems in the county and not returned calls from association members, while Madrigal has consulted with the group many times.

Madrigal, who has raised $140,000 for his campaign, has not attacked the incumbent’s reputation. He portrays himself as a community leader who has helped local businesses create jobs, worked to hire more police officers and improved services for neighborhoods.

He said his priorities as a county supervisor would be addressing homelessness, protecting the region’s water, and bringing services to county unincorporated islands, as well as improving transparency in government.

Madrigal was re-elected to a second City Council term less than a year ago. If he were to win the election, his local government salary would jump from $24,000 to $86,250 annually.

As for reports that he has taken undeserved credit for city enhancements, such as the seasonal ice-skating rink downtown, Madrigal said it’s an unfair claim. “I am proud of all the work on the projects that I have been involved with and believe it is important to tell my constituents and the community about the work I have done,” he said.

According to disclosures, Madrigal has raised more campaign cash than Withrow, with large contributions coming from labor groups. The Service Employees International Union Local 521, which represents county social workers, child support specialists and mental health clinicians, gave his campaign $5,000 this month.

Other large donations included $5,000 from the Teamsters union; $2,000 from Operating Engineers Local Union No. 3; $1,500 from United Domestic Workers; $3,500 from Bloom Innovations, an Oakland cannabis company; and $5,000 each from CCSAC Inc. of Alameda and Holman Capital Corp. of Rancho Santa Margarita.

In a disclosure in late September, Madrigal reported $73,500 in campaign expenditures.

Withrow has raised $126,000, and reported $81,000 in campaign spending this year. He has recently received large donations from Recology Inc. of San Francisco ($4,000); Sanctuary Soil & Feed Inc. ($4,000); and Cold Storage Manufacturing of Union City ($4,000.)

The advocate for farmland protection receives numerous donations from farmers and agribusiness.

Withrow is not aware of additional opportunities for debating Madrigal before the Nov. 6 election. Frank Damrell III, who’s running against Berryhill in supervisorial District 4, including most of Modesto, said the lack of debate among the candidates is disappointing.

Berryhill, who’s terming out of the Legislature, has not campaigned in public since suffering a slow-to-heal hip fracture in early July and was diagnosed with early stage Parkinson’s disease in August.

This story was originally published October 18, 2018 at 12:40 PM.