EDITOR'S NOTE: This is one in a series of profiles on Oceanside City Council candidates who are vying for two seats in the Nov. 4 election. For more on the election, visit www.nctimes.com/elections2008/local.
OCEANSIDE -- The dais has been a lonely place for City Councilwoman Esther Sanchez.
At philosophical odds with a conservative council majority, the outspoken, two-term councilwoman often finds herself on the short side of split votes.
Yet Sanchez, 52, doesn't seem discouraged.
"It's a wonderful time for Oceanside," she said in a recent interview. "I've made a lot of things happen."
Sanchez is one of eight residents on the Nov. 4 ballot for two council seats, though one candidate, Rick Kratcoski, has dropped out.
Her campaign signs grace many of the same yards as those touting Mayor Jim Wood (her sometimes-but-not-always political ally) and fellow council candidate Charles "Chuck" Lowery, a bakery owner and neighborhood advocate.
Sanchez has opposed road projects with strong neighborhood opposition, such as a highway interchange at Rancho del Oro and an extension of North Melrose Drive. At campaign appearances, she touts the city's recent drop in crime, pointing to the sizable raises she helped give police officers in 2006.
"We were the bottom of the barrel," Sanchez said of the old salaries. "We had retention problems."
Opponents have accused her of kowtowing to the employee unions that backed her campaign.
The sole Democrat on the technically nonpartisan council, Sanchez has been endorsed by the city's police and fire unions, the Sierra Club, the League of Conservation Voters and the Democratic Party.
"I just love that gal," said Marilyn Prado, an 80-year-old resident of the Oceana senior community. "She's a smart little cookie."
But Sanchez also has detractors.
Community activist Lawson Chadwick launched a signature drive to recall her in 2006, but dropped the campaign after there was a shift in the council's balance of power. At the time, Sanchez called it a political stunt.
Behind the dais, Sanchez often clashes with the conservative council majority of Rocky Chavez, Jerry Kern and Jack Feller.
"I don't think she likes people to push the envelope on their own property," said Feller, a staunch property rights advocate who is also up for re-election.
Sanchez calls Feller's development philosophy misguided, a surefire way to create a "mish-mash" of projects. "I want the best project, and we haven't been getting it," Sanchez said. " We have a reputation for being second best."
Sanchez grew up in the Eastside neighborhood and earned a degree in urban studies at Brown University in Rhode Island. She also has a law degree from University of California Hastings.
Until recently, she worked in the Public Defender's office. These days, she is working to open a private law office on Coast Highway and focus on land-use law.
Contact staff writer Craig TenBroeck at (760) 901-4062 or ctenbroeck@nctimes.com.
