Heather Fargo

See also: 2004 Sacramento mayoral election

Upon the sudden death in November 1999 of Mayor Joe Serna, Jr., Land Park City Councilman Jimmie Yee became the acting mayor. Several candidates announced their intentions to run. Other than Fargo, three other council members were also seeking the mayorship. North Sacramento City Councilman Rob Kerth who represented an area immediately adjacent to Fargo's also decided to run. In addition, Steve Cohn, the city councilman for East Sacramento ran along with Robbie Waters who represents the Pocket and Greenhaven areas decided to run along with several lesser known candidates that included businessman and attorney Joe Genshlea and community activist Julie Padilla. Fargo, who won 22% of the vote in the primary and Kerth who won 20% of the vote made it into the November runoff, where Fargo was elected with just 53% of the vote. In winning, Fargo became the second elected mayor of Sacramento, and the first mayor from north of the American River . ^[1]

2004 mayoral campaign

See also: 2004 Sacramento mayoral election

Fargo did not face as stiff competition in her 2004 re-election. Her main opponent was Ross W. Relles, Jr., a businessman. Other candidates were Deputy Attorney General Mark Soble and Lorenzo Patino Law School President Leonard Padilla. Virtually unopposed against candidates far less funded, Fargo won solidly in the primary election, thus no runoff was necessary.

2008 mayoral campaign

See also: 2008 Sacramento mayoral election

The primary election for mayor took place on June 3, 2008. Fargo received 39% of the vote, while former NBA star and Sacramento native Kevin Johnson received 46% of the vote. ^[2] Since neither received a majority of the votes, a run off election was scheduled for November 2008, where she was defeated by a margin of 58% to 42%.

During the primary election campaign, Fargo initially claimed that she had the support of all the city councilmembers. Yet, Councilman Robbie Waters, Steve Cohn, and Sandra Sheedy all ended up endorsing Johnson during the primary. ^{[3] [4]} On September 4, 2008, only Councilman Kevin McCarty endorsed Heather Fargo. ^[5]

Political positions

Environment

Fargo was a founding member and the first secretary of the Sacramento Tree Foundation, which is considered an important voice in Sacramento's environmental community. ^{[ citation needed ] [6]}

Gun control

During her tenure Mayor Fargo became a member of the Mayors Against Illegal Guns Coalition, ^[7] an organization formed in 2006 and co-chaired by New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg and Boston mayor Thomas Menino.

Women's rights

Fargo is a long term advocate for women in politics. After she left office Fargo has continued to encourage women to run for office. ^[8] Fargo is also active in promoting awareness about the history of women's suffrage. ^[9]

Mayoral tenure

Mayor Fargo's tenure as mayor included disagreements with the Maloof family, owners of the NBA's Sacramento Kings, over the building of a new arena.

In 2006, 2007, and 2008, Mayor Fargo was named "Best Local Elected Official" by the readers of Sacramento Magazine in their annual poll. ^[10]

Heather Fargo
54th Mayor of Sacramento
In office November 2000 –December 2008

Name	Percentage of the Vote
Heather Fargo	21.76%
Rob Kerth	20.19%
Robbie Waters	18.23%
Joe Genshlea	14.68%
Julie Padilla	11.68%
Steve Cohn	9.08%

2000 general election for mayor of Sacramento

Name	Percentage of the Vote
Heather Fargo	54.07%
Rob Kerth	45.93%

2004 primary election for mayor of Sacramento

Name	Percentage of the Vote
Heather Fargo	59.77%
Ross W. Relles, Jr.	20.91%
Mark Soble	11.54%
Leonard Padilla	7.78%

Because Fargo received a majority of the votes in the primary election, no general election was necessary.

2008 primary election for mayor of Sacramento

Name	Percentage of the Vote
Kevin Johnson	46.58%
Heather Fargo	39.65%
Leonard Padilla	5.83%
Shawn D. Eldredge	3.44%
Muriel Strand	2.79%

Johnson and Fargo proceeded to a runoff election on November 5.

2008 general election for mayor of Sacramento

Name	Percentage of the Vote
Kevin Johnson	54%
Heather Fargo	46%

Precincts Reporting - 215 out of 391

References

1. David Goldfield, Encyclopedia of American Cities, v.1. Thousand Oaks: Sage, 2007, p. 881. 9780761928843
2. Mary Lynne Vellinga (2008-06-04). "Johnson leads mayor's race". Sacramento Bee . Archived from the original on 2008-06-07. Retrieved 2008-06-04.
3. "Additional Endorsements for Kevin Johnson". www.smartvoter.org. Retrieved 20 April 2020.
4. "The hunger - Bites - Opinions - October 16, 2008". Sacramento News & Review. 14 October 2008. Retrieved 20 April 2020.
5. SacBee - McCarty endorsing Fargo for Sacramento mayor Archived 2008-09-08 at the Wayback Machine
6. "Full Biography for Heather Fargo".
7. "Mayors Against Illegal Guns: Coalition Members". Archived from the original on 2007-07-02.
8. "The Sacramento Voter: League of Women Voters" (PDF).
9. "Women Power at the River Cats | Community". Sacramento365. Retrieved 2020-10-10.
10. Best of Sacramento - Sacramento, California Archived 2008-04-29 at the Wayback Machine

Political offices
Preceded by David Shore	Councilmember, Sacramento City Council, District 1 1989–2000	Succeeded by Ray Tretheway
Preceded by Jimmie R. Yee	Mayor of Sacramento, California 2000–2008	Succeeded by Kevin Johnson