Central Valley Citizens’ Group Says Voter Dissatisfaction with California High-Speed Rail Was Reflected in Noteworthy Election Results

Leadership of Citizens for California High-Speed Rail Accountability (CCHSRA) asserts that the clear, unequivocal positions of several candidates against the current California High-Speed Rail plan were an asset in motivating San Joaquin Valley voters to go to the polls on Election Day.

“Some political commentators in Sacramento and Washington, D.C. said they were surprised by the election performance of several candidates in the San Joaquin Valley,” says Frank Oliveira, a co-chairman of Citizens for California High-Speed Rail Accountability (CCHSRA). “They fail to recognize that water, agriculture, and high-speed rail continue to be prominent concerns in our communities.”

Oliveira cites the strong election performance of Congressman David Valadao, Congressman Jeff Denham, State Senator Andy Vidak, and the unexpected preliminary lead of 736 votes of Johnny Tacherra (challenger to Congressman Jim Costa). All of these candidates spoke openly to a broad spectrum of local residents about the drawbacks and challenges of water, agriculture, and high-speed rail.

“It has surprised everyone that Johnny Tacherra could actually end up unseating the ‘Father of High-Speed Rail’ in the Central Valley,” says Oliveira. “But Tacherra made his campaign distinct in part by opposing the current path of California High-Speed Rail through prime farmland and neighborhoods full of small businesses and churches.”

Oliveria sums up what is happening in the San Joaquin Valley: “Residents from all perspectives and walks of life are frustrated about the apparent disdain that some politicians show toward our communities. Some Californians embrace a futuristic vision of a bullet train cutting across our abandoned farmland. We want our elected officials to represent our desire to maintain the importance of agriculture in our region.”

Citizens for California High Speed Rail Accountability (CCHSRA) is a nonprofit, nonpartisan advocacy group based in Kings County. Members include residents of the City of Hanford and surrounding rural areas, along with other Californians affected by the high-speed rail. The group has been in the forefront since June 2011 of attempting to get the California High-Speed Rail Authority (CHSRA) and its board to be in full compliance with Proposition 1A, which the state’s voters passed in November 2008.

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