Sun-Star recommends three candidates for critical City Council election in Merced
Merced faces major challenges. Crime is top of mind for many citizens in the wake of a 19% rise in violent and property offenses as reported in 2021 over the previous year. Additionally, Police Chief Tom Cavallero announced in August that he would be retiring at the end of December, so a replacement must be hired.
Poverty impacts a quarter of the city’s 90,000 residents, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
And housing costs have risen, with the median price now over $400,000. Meanwhile, the supply has been frustratingly tight, especially for UC Merced students.
It is no overstatement to declare this year’s City Council election to be one of the most important for Merced in years.
Stepping up to take on these problems are two incumbents seeking re-election — Fernando Echevarria in south Merced’s District 2, and Delray Shelton in north Merced’s District 6. Councilmember Kevin Blake is termed out of his eastside District 4 seat.
Challenging Echevarria is retired postal carrier Ronnie DeAnda. Facing off against Shelton is Fue Xiong, an environmental engineer and housing advocate. Looking to replace Blake are radio journalist and businessman Casey Steed, trustee and legal counselor Shane Smith, and Javier Fuentes, a community member.
Whoever gets elected to the council will join a fractured group, as was seen in the bruising debate about whether to put the Measure C tax renewal on the November ballot. Political dysfunction is yet another problem confronting the city.
Here is the Sun-Star Editorial Board’s recommendations for the seats:
District 2
Echevarria made no friends in certain quarters of Merced when he voted against putting the renewal of Measure C, the half-cent sales tax that helps fund police and fire services, on November’s ballot.
There is little debate over how Measure C is critical to Merced’s public safety services. It provides $7 million annually, supporting 30 police and fire jobs.
The Editorial Board believes delaying the Measure C vote to a future election was a mistake. Merced’s voters could have weighed the pros and cons now and made their choice. Putting it off is a needless delay tactic of three councilmembers, including Echevarria.
That said, Echevarria is the better candidate for District 2. He was able to directly address questions from the Editorial Board about the issues, which could not be said for DeAnda.
When asked how he would address the housing problems facing the city, DeAnda flatly declared he didn’t know anything about housing. On the topic of housing woes facing UC Merced students, DeAnda got confused on the question and thought it was about COVID.
Age is not a disqualifier, and DeAnda makes no secret of being in his 80s. But being a lifelong Merced resident, as DeAnda is, does not automatically qualify one for city office, either. DeAnda expects constituents to bring him their problems, and he promises to get to work on them. Unfortunately, that is reactive, not proactive.
Should he win re-election, Echevarria would do well to maintain self-control as a representative of the city. Early in his first term he shouted at a homeless advocate during a meeting; allowed a chokehold to be applied to himself in the wake of George Floyd’s death for a demonstration; and made unfounded accusations at then-Mayor Mike Murphy. Such outlandish behavior is unprofessional and undignified. District 2 residents deserve the best of their representative.
District 4
Two strong candidates are seeking to represent District 4, while a third person on the ballot is running a ghost campaign. The Editorial Board thinks Shane Smith is the best choice.
Smith, a partner in a Merced law firm, tries cases in federal courts. A 10-year resident of Merced, Smith is one of the five trustees on the Merced City School District board. Before his election in 2018, Smith was on the commission that drew up the boundaries of the City Council districts. He also chaired the commission that reviewed the city charter. Among its recommendations was to extend the mayoral term to four years. He also helped review the city’s use-of-force policies in the wake of George Floyd’s death in 2020.
Smith believes public safety is a critical issue and would have voted to place Measure C on the November ballot. Another way to fund police and fire services would be the general fund, but that would mean cuts to other programs, he notes.
To improve the housing situation, Smith favors the city partnering with nonprofits like the Central Valley Coalition for Affordable Housing. Filling in undeveloped areas in town, as opposed to sprawling outward, makes the most sense, he said.
Running against him is Casey Steed, a Merced native who has a daily radio talk show. He serves on the city’s Building and Housing Board of Appeals and volunteers with Court Appointed Special Advocates.
Like Smith, Steed also favors fully funding the police and says more attention must be put on what he calls quality of life issues, like homelessness and getting mental health treatment to those who need such help.
A third candidate on the ballot, Javier Fuentes, has lived in Merced for 30 years. He is semi-retired from a career in radio sales. Homelessness in Merced is motivating him to campaign now.
Fuentes said his grandchildren were at his home visiting one recent morning and discovered a homeless person on the front doorstep. He said other neighbors have also had issues with homeless people in the neighborhood.
Fuentes believes homeless people receive medical help at Mercy Medical Center and are then simply released from the facility. If elected, he vows to find a better solution by convening a meeting with hospital officials, homeless advocates and city leaders.
District 6
This council race is a clear choice between the incumbent who believes Merced is on a good track, and a challenger who sees many in the city being left behind economically and socially.
The incumbent is Delray Shelton, who first took office in 2018. A Merced native, Shelton is a lieutenant in the Merced County Sheriff’s Office assigned to administrative services.
Opposing him is Fue Xiong, an engineer for the state Department of Toxic Substances Control. He immigrated as a boy with his parents and siblings from a refugee camp in Thailand to Merced. He went on to graduate as valedictorian at Buhach Colony High School.
On Measure C, Shelton voted in favor of placing it on the fall ballot. He foresees major layoffs in police and fire if the funding is not continued. “The people should have had the opportunity to vote for this,” he said. “That was taken away from them. And that is shameful.”
But Xiong criticized the process, saying there was confusion about the deadline for the council to act that gave the impression of a lack of transparency. He also said the survey done to gauge residents’ views left out much of south Merced. Since Measure C does not expire until 2026, the council should restart the community outreach “and do it the right way,” Xiong said.
Some perceive Xiong as being anti-police. In fact, he wants to improve policing. One example: instead of bogging down sworn officers with minor duties like traffic enforcement, Xiong proposes having a corps of non-sworn personnel handling such matters. That would free up fully trained officers to go after serious crimes.
When it comes to housing, Shelton says the city has sensible policies for good housing investment and that the council has backed all types of residences being built.
But Xiong counters that Merced leaders have overemphasized housing for people at mid-to-upper income levels. More very low-to-mid-income housing is needed, he thinks.
Xiong’s campaign website makes clear he wants to be a voice for those living on the margins of Merced’s economy, be they young or old. Given the pervasive poverty in the city, Xiong would be a strong advocate for those who are struggling, as he is no stranger to poverty himself. He also offers well-conceived counterpoints to conventional wisdom. District 6 voters should elect him to be their representative.
In summary: The Sun-Star endorses Fernando Echevarria for District 2, Shane Smith for District 4 and Fue Xiong for District 6.