Keith Rhinehart, a former United Parcel Service supervisor and local substitute teacher, has entered the race for Sonoma County's 1st District supervisorial seat.
Rhinehart, 59, who lives just north of Santa Rosa off Riebli Road, said a chief campaign goal is to maintain a "full" or "right-sized government" by stopping the outsourcing of county services.
He and others, including some local nonprofit leaders, have criticized decisions by the Board of Supervisors late last year to award lucrative contracts to two large, out-of-the-area firms. The contracts were connected with the operation of a new probation facility and recruitment of temporary workers.
Rhinehart also touted the goal of increased health care access and an interest in redistributing "the dollars held by the few so that the community can share in those dollars and grow in a healthy way."
He did not discuss any particular tax strategies, but suggested "a more level playing field" would help the county rebound from its current financial struggles.
"I don't hear these issues being addressed by any of the other candidates," Rhinehart said.
Rhinehart has not held public office before, but he said his managerial work with UPS and current work in education gave him a broad set of skills and experience to call on.
He joins a field of four others vying for the seat held by Supervisor Valerie Brown, who has served on the board since 2002 and decided last year not to seek re-election.
The candidates include Santa Rosa City Council members Susan Gorin and John Sawyer; Mark Bramfitt, an Sonoma energy consultant and board member of the Valley of the Moon Water District and Sonoma Valley Citizens Advisory Commission; and Gina Cuclis, a Boyes Hot Springs communications consultant and member of the county's Maternal, Child and Adolescent Health Advisory Board.
The 1st District takes in all of Sonoma Valley and extends into east Santa Rosa, including Oakmont, Bennett Valley and Rincon Valley and parts of the Fountaingrove area.
Among the five candidates, Gorin is the lone entrant who has to move to run for the seat. Reached Tuesday by phone, the Santa Rosa councilwoman said she was "surrounded by boxes" at her current Fountaingrove home. She and her husband plan to be in a leased Oakmont home within two weeks, she said.
The deadline to file for the 1st District race is March 14. For the two other supervisorial races, both of which will feature the incumbents - Efren Carrillo and Shirlee Zane - the filing deadline is March 9. No candidates have filed so far to challenge Carrillo or Zane.
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