Merced County Districts 1, 2 have their final candidates

The filing period for candidates for two Merced County Board of Supervisors seats closed Friday, revealing the list of people who will face off in the June 7 primary.

Districts 1 and 2 drew a total of five candidates. District 4 is also up for a vote, but the filing deadline was extended until Wednesday because the incumbent, Deidre Kelsey, opted not to seek re-election.

Supervisors serve four-year terms. Three of the county’s five district seats are up for vote in the June race: District 1, which stretches from Le Grand and Planada to Livingston, encompassing parts of south Merced along the way; District 2, made up mostly of north and central Merced; and District 4, which stretches from Snelling to Gustine.

District 1 incumbent Merced County Supervisor John Pedrozo, 58, was first elected in 2004 and raised $12,077 in campaign contributions last year, according to Merced County Registrar of Voters records.

Livingston Mayor Rodrigo Espinoza, 47, the newest name on the list of candidates, tossed his hat into the District 1 ring. The peach and almond farmer has been mayor in Livingston since 2010.

Livingston City Councilman Alex McCabe pulled papers for District 1, but said Friday he would not run for the county seat. He said he preferred to throw his support behind Espinoza.

In District 2, incumbent Hub Walsh will face challengers Lee Lor and Casey Steed.

Walsh, 65, who was elected to District 2 in 2008, collected $1,788 in 2015 contributions, according to records.

Lor, 34, launched her campaign in February. She 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.

Steed, 53, who is an electrical contractor, may be better known as co-host of the weekly talk radio show on KYOS called “Citizens Watch.” He challenged Walsh before in 2012.

The race in District 4 is the most crowded with six contenders, and remains open for more. Kelsey, who served the district for two decades, announced in July she would not seek re-election. Because she did not file, the deadline in that race is extended five days, according to the Registrar of Voters office.

Anyone living in that district can still file if they’ve resided there for at least 30 days, collect 20 signatures from registered voters and pay the $1,000.58 filing fee before the end of business Wednesday.

Potential District 4 candidates who have already pulled or filed papers include: Fidel Cervantes, 23, Delhi; Paul Dunn, 62, Snelling; Rich Ford, 57, Gustine; Jack Mobley, 58, Merced; Lloyd Pareira, 53, Merced; and Ramon Prado, 29, Delhi.

Cervantes, a UC Merced graduate, has served on the Delhi Unified School District board of trustees since 2011. He collected $2,743 in contributions last year, records show.

Dunn is a retired Merced College educator who taught in the mechanized agriculture department.

The owner of Ford’s Farm Supply, Ford was on the Gustine City Council for 24 years. He most recently was the mayor before walking away from city government in 2010.

Mobley is president of ServiceMaster Commercial Cleaning Services, a janitorial company. He’s made more than one attempt campaigning for the state’s 21st Assembly District.

A trustee for the Merced River School District board, Pareira runs his family’s dairy, called Oak Valley Dairy.

Prado is on Delhi’s Municipal Advisory Committee, an advisory board for the Board of Supervisors in the unincorporated city. He also attends Merced College.

Only the incumbents and Cervantes have filed campaign contribution paperwork.

This story was originally published March 11, 2016 at 6:42 PM with the headline "Merced County Districts 1, 2 have their final candidates."