Assemblyman Bill Dodd to make bid for state Senate seat

A little less than a year before the June 2016 primary election, the list of contenders for state legislative seats representing the North Coast continues to grow.

Assemblyman Bill Dodd, D-Napa, who has been in his state post for just over six months, announced Monday that he will seek the 3rd District Senate seat held by Lois Wolk.

Later that same day, Wolk’s son - Davis Mayor Dan Wolk - announced that he will seek Dodd’s Assembly seat.

Dodd, a former Napa County supervisor, currently represents a district that includes Lake and Napa counties and a section of Sonoma County, including Rohnert Park and the unincorporated areas of Sonoma Valley.

Dodd on Tuesday noted that he will finish out his term as an assemblyman no matter the outcome of the election.

“I wasn’t guaranteeing more than two years in this office,” he said.

Former Democratic Assemblywoman Mariko Yamada also is in the race, as is Republican Greg Coppes.

Dodd made the case that he can be a more effective legislator in the Senate.

“It’s a body of 40 instead of 80,” he said. “I think it gives me better opportunities to work and to create partnerships to get things done.”

David McCuan, a political scientist at Sonoma State University, called Dodd among a class of “moderate, Chamber of Commerce, ?business-friendly Democrats that are on the rise in California.”

McCuan concurred with Dodd’s analysis that serving in the Senate affords a better opportunity to influence policy and “play politics.”

“Also,” McCuan added, “Senate seats are becoming a lot less contested.”

Dodd said he has raised about $700,000 through his Assembly re-election committee - money that he can legally transfer to his race for the Senate seat, which Dodd said he is planning to do.

Among the issues he said he plans to highlight in the campaign are affordable tuition for college students, protecting seniors from scams and abuse, and water.

Lois Wolk, D-Davis, is being termed out of office and has endorsed Dodd.

The 3rd Senate District spans the Interstate 80 corridor from Vallejo to Davis and at its western edge includes the cities of Petaluma, Rohnert Park, Cotati and Sonoma.

In a twist, Dan Wolk was among several candidates who lost to Dodd last year in a bid for the 4th Assembly District seat.

Wolk has served on the Davis City Council since 2011. He also works as deputy county counsel for Solano County, handling public finance, public contracting and water issues.

The 4th Assembly District spans Napa and Lake counties and most of Yolo County, as well as portions of Sonoma, Solano and Colusa counties.

You can reach Staff Writer Derek Moore at 521-5336 or derek.moore@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter ?@deadlinederek.