Candidate Sara Hernandez spoke at Q&A in Windsor Square
AUDIENCE WATCHES AS candidate Sara Hernandez sitting at front (left) answers questions
By Diego Owen-Lara
Sara Hernandez, candidate for California’s 26th district State Senate, held a Q&A at the home of Dena Bloom and Robert Klyman in Windsor Square, and State assemblyman of the Los Angeles 51st district Rick Zbur spoke in support of her platform.
Hernandez is running against Sarah Rascón—both are democrats with progressive platforms in the 26th senate district which stretches from Eagle Rock to East L.A. to Hancock Park to Los Feliz. Affordable housing, environmentalism, immigration, gun safety, and keeping film and TV in Los Angeles are priorities in each campaign.
Bloom introduced Zbur and Hernandez and spoke on the importance of this state senate election. Bloom said, “The legislation that may be impacting us more [than federal legislation] is actually coming from Sacramento.”
Zbur then spoke about his endorsement of Hernandez, “Sara is going to be, really the best partner for me in the state senate, which also hopefully means she will be the best partner for you all as well.” He explained that his key focuses are prioritizing filming in Los Angeles, LGBTQ civil rights, stopping antisemitism, and affordable housing on main streets and near major public transit stops.
When asked how she would balance the vast diversity of people and political opinions in the district, Hernandez answered, “I’m not bound to a cogovernance pledge that I think my opponent is, or seeking that kind of endorsement… I’m a progressive democrat, but I have very clear ideas of what I think is best for the state of California which is rooted in my experience… and that’s paired with a really intensive desire to make sure we are in touch with community needs.”
Many of the questions from residents were centered around the film and television industries. When questioned about the Paramount Skydance merger, Hernandez said, “It is going to create less opportunities for creatives, you know, any sort of massive consolidation is going to create less jobs… It’s imperative that we do whatever we can to increase opportunities” When asked for specifics on how she would work to bring back film jobs, Hernandez said, “We have to modernize the tax credits… making sure our film tax credit is on par with or better than the tax credit programs in New York and in Georgia, which are both eating our lunch.”
The audience seemed excited about Hernandez’s prospects in the race. Tajvir Singh, a regional organizer for the campaign, spoke about why he decided to work with Hernandez, “She has progressive values with a track record of actually getting things done” An attendee said, “I think her platform is practical and something people would actually vote for.” Another said, “I like her, and I like her politics, and I think others will too.”
Category: People
