First Merced County District 2 supervisor challenger opens campaign

The first competition for any of Merced County’s sitting supervisors announced her presence on Wednesday during a campaign kickoff in downtown Merced.

Lee Lor, 33, said she will make a run at the District 2 seat of the Board of Supervisors, which is held by Hub Walsh. Lor is the executive director of the Merced County Education Fund, an effort of the Merced County Office of Education to help families who can’t afford extracurricular activities for their children.

“As a mother and a working parent, I want better for my children,” she said during the campaign event. “I want better for our future.”

The district is made up mostly of central and north Merced.

Born on the East Coast, Lor said she moved to Merced County about 20 years ago. The Merced resident touted her volunteer experience in the county.

She said she was troubled to see children playing in dangerous neighborhoods and wanted to help. “For the last 15 years, I’ve volunteered in the community, working for what I want for us and for my family,” she said.

She said as a county leader she would look to rebuild the community’s “voice,” saying the county must invest in job-training programs for young people and adults. She said the Merced area should also lead the way, because it’s the county’s top “economic engine.”

During her campaign kickoff speech, she pledged that she and her supporters would knock on doors to hear what people need in the district.

Lor has held leadership roles in the Greater Merced Chamber of Commerce’s Leadership Merced and Merced Lao Family Community. She was recently reappointed to the Merced County Fair Board and has worked with Valley Crisis Center and the Merced County Probation Department.

She earned a bachelor’s degree from California State University, Stanislaus, and a master’s in business administration from California State University, Fresno.

District 2 incumbent Walsh, 65, has twice been elected to the seat on the board since 2008. Before joining the board, Walsh served two terms each on the Merced City Council and as the city’s mayor.

Walsh has a bachelor’s degree from the University of California, Berkeley; a master’s in social sciences from Pacific Lutheran University; and a master’s in business administration from California State University, Stanislaus.

Also on the ballot in June are races for districts 1 and 4. District 4 Supervisor Deidre Kelsey told the Sun-Star in July she will not seek re-election after two decades on the board.

A half-dozen possible candidates have since pulled papers for the seat: Fidel Cervantes, Paul Dunn, Rich Ford, Jack Mobley, Lloyd Pareira and Ramon Prado.

No one has pulled papers to challenge District 1 Supervisor John Pedrozo.

Candidates cannot officially file to be on the ballot until Tuesday.

This story was originally published February 11, 2016 at 5:24 PM with the headline "First Merced County District 2 supervisor challenger opens campaign."