Modesto can overcome City Hall dysfunction with this mayoral candidate

Of the seven candidates running for Modesto mayor, Sue Zwahlen is best suited to lead the city from periodic dysfunction to prosperity.

Zwahlen, 66, was the top vote-getter in both of her successful races for Modesto City Schools Board, in 2009 and 2013. Voters like her because she’s steady, she’s strong and she knows how to craft unity despite disparate opinions.

The fractured Modesto City Council has stalled out too often in recent years because of disunity, hurting its performance — and more importantly, our people, who deserve much better. Most of the seven candidates (the name of an eighth appears on the Nov. 3 ballot, although he has dropped out) openly acknowledge the divisive distrust that has kept Modesto from achieving greater heights.

“It feels like Modesto has been in a holding pattern for a very long time,” Zwahlen said in a recent Modesto Bee candidates forum, which can be viewed at modbee.com. “I want to see us move forward.”

Amen. It’s high time to set aside the bickering and petty put-downs and set sights on our beloved Modesto Arch’s promise of contentment.

Incumbent Ted Brandvold, a 61-year-old architect, has genuine affection for the city he has struggled to lead. Brandvold has had five years to prove himself. He has failed.

Brandvold’s latest desperate attempt to draw attention may be his most pathetic — a campaign video opposing public health orders meant to protect people from COVID-19. It’s similar to the irresponsible letter he and other mayors sent to the state in April urging an aggressive and immediate reopening of the Stanislaus County economy, which was followed by one of the worst and most sustained virus outbreaks in the nation.

The mayor stubbornly stands behind toxic Ted Howze, the congressional candidate whose racist use of social media scared away leaders of his own party with better sense. Brandvold is a horrible public speaker, delivering only one state of the city address in five years mostly because he’s just not comfortable in front of a crowd. But his most glaring weakness is an inability to lead by building consensus among council members.

Other Modesto mayoral candidates

Evidence of this is seen in the largest field in at least four decades running for Modesto mayor, including two members of Brandvold’s current City Council: Doug Ridenour and Kristi Ah You.

Ridenour, 69, a retired police sergeant, has led a coalition of council members opposing the mayor on some key votes, and he long ago announced his intent to oust Brandvold. Hurting Ridenour is his involvement as the target of an expensive internal investigation that mostly cleared him of wrongdoing while exposing a debilitating rift spreading from the council to senior city staff.

The candidacy of Ah You, a 50-year-old funeral home manager, came as more of a surprise, because she had been one of Brandvold’s closest and most reliable allies. In March, she announced that she would leave politics and not seek re-election, but changed her mind in July and now wants Brandvold’s job. It’s not clear how voters will view the exorbitant $100,000 political donation she accepted in August from a cannabis dispensary owner, or her involvement in the same investigation entangling Ridenour.

Ridenour or Ah You would slide into the mayor’s seat with little trouble. Both are effective in debates because of their familiarity with city issues. But talk can be cheap, and they are part of the problem now plaguing City Hall. Damaged relations with senior staff would remain if either becomes mayor. A clean break is in order.

There is a lot to like about Naramsen Goriel, a 36-year-old community organizer and member of two city commissions. He’s informed and well-spoken, and could go far as he gains experience. Whoever wins the mayor’s race should listen closely to his ideas on a Modesto art district.

First-time candidate Rick Countryman, 59, co-senior pastor of Big Valley Grace Community Church and a lifelong Modesto resident, is charismatic and good in front of a crowd. His answers to policy questions are not as deep and nuanced as those more familiar with inner workings at City Hall. And it’s not clear whether skills acquired from running a megachurch with 150 employees and an 800-student school might translate to running the 17th-largest city in California, with 222,335 residents, a $447 million operating budget and 1,200 employees.

Erin Sommer Tenorio, a 27-year-old representative for natural products, is unproven and unprepared.

Zwahlen is best for what ails Modesto

It is abundantly clear that the Modesto City Council, now more than ever, needs healing. And few are as acquainted with healing as an emergency room nurse. That’s what Zwahlen, now retired, did for 40 years.

Hers is not the loudest voice in the room. She is not the flashiest candidate. She never will command the most attention.

But we will take substance over style every time.

Zwahlen, a mother of six, knows how to referee disagreements. She knows how to be civil and compassionate. Her list of community service is impressive, stretching from Latino groups, beautification and Interfaith Ministries to county panels on homelessness and strengthening families, and much more.

It’s worth noting that two of Modesto’s most effective and best-loved mayors of all time were women: Peggy Mensinger and Carol Whiteside. The diversity of our community, cited by several candidates in The Bee forum as among Modesto’s greatest strengths, would be advanced with another wise, capable matriarch at the helm.

It’s time that the City Council put rancor and bickering in its rear view mirror and surge ahead with a proven leader: Sue Zwahlen.

This story was originally published October 11, 2020 at 5:00 AM.