Tulare County Republicans are pushing back against a Board of Supervisors candidate claiming to be a conservative.
District two candidate Benny Corona sent out a mailer to voters titled “Our Conservative Voice” replete with a GOP elephant.
The big picture: The mailer calls Corona a fiscal watchdog who has Tulare County values and will fight tax increases, along with the claims of being a conservative.
- “Our Conservative Voice and Fiscal Watchdog for the Board of Supervisors!” the mailer reads.
- The mailer also includes the Republican Party elephant, making it look like he is the Republican Party’s choice in the race.
- Corona is running against Pete Vander Poel, who was first elected in 2008.
- While the supervisor position is nonpartisan – meaning the candidates’ political party affiliations will not appear on the ballot – Vander Poel is a Republican who has the support of Republicans such as Rep. David Valadao (R–Hanford), state Sen. Shannon Grove (R–Bakersfield), Asm. Vince Fong (R–Bakersfield) and Tulare County Sheriff Mike Boudreaux.
Corona’s history: Corona works as a biomethane analyst for the California Public Utilities Commission.
- Per his website, he is also an advocate for agriculture-based and rural communities in California.
- He graduated from UC Berkeley in 2021 with a degree in public policy.
- Earlier in February, Corona was a key guest in a California Democratic Party canvassing event in the south Valley, featuring Congressional contender Rudy Salas (D–Bakersfield) and fellow Tulare County Supervisorial contender Joe Soria.
The other side: After the mailer was sent out, Tulare County Republican Party Chairwoman Connie Conway sent a message out to the district’s Republican voters warning them against the “deceptive flyer filled with total lies.”
- “This candidate is claiming to be a ‘conservative.’ Nothing could be further from the truth,” Conway said. “This leftist candidate is attempting to radicalize our country. Let me be very clear, there is only one conservative – and that’s Republican Pete Vander Poel. Vote for Pete, and return your ballot now to end this charade.”
Corona clapback: Despite attaching GOP branding to his mailer, Corona’s campaign leaned on its claims of his conservative credentials.
- “Benny Corona is a strong fiscal conservative and that’s a fact. The incumbent may claim to be a Republican but over his years, he’s voted to give himself a raise over 10 times including in 2021. Mr. Corona is just accurately sharing with voters that he will protect their tax dollars,” the campaign said in a statement to The Sun.
