Betty Yee, the Democratic political candidate for California state controller, stopped by Fresno State Wednesday to discuss issues including the role of women in politics.
Yee, who is running for the position against Fresno Mayor Ashley Swearengin, narrowly edged out a competing Democrat, John Perez, in the June primaries to make it to the November ballot.
The event at Fresno State, put on by the women’s studies department, was part of a two-day campaign stop in the city, and came just one day after a Field Poll put Yee 14 points ahead of Swearengin.
Yee spoke on issues California is faced with today, such as women’s rights and women’s role in politics today. One of the most specific issues she mentioned was the issue of violence against women, including those on college campuses. Yee encouraged students, especially female students, to become activists for women’s rights and equality.
Before giving her speech, Yee gave special recognition to Fresno’s first female mayor, Karen Humphrey, who attended the event. Humphrey was mayor from 1989 to 1993.
Discussing the importance of bringing more women into politics, Yee said more women need to have a louder voice.
“We need someone who is going to bring all of those voices to the table and use them to reflect on the realities that women are facing today,” Yee said. “We can’t just be the subject of change, we have to be agents of change and stand up for ourselves and express our voices that need to be heard.”
Yee also discussed the drought, joblessness, underutilization of economic opportunities and tight resources. She said that we need better organization and solutions in our political system, which is part of her campaign’s focus for California.
“There is a lot I want to accomplish,” Yee said. “One of the things I want to do is have a deep examination of our underlying tax structure here in California. We have an outdated tax system. I’m not interested necessarily in reforming the tax system to raise additional revenue. What I’m interested in is trying to bring more fairness into the system and more stability.”
Nicole Garza, 21, a criminology major, talked about some of her takeaways from Yee’s speech.
“I think it’s supporting our female candidates and politicians, because the more we get out there and the more females have a say and stand up for themselves in politics, the more I think we can have more women standing in politics, in Senate and maybe even presidency,” Garza said.
“I think it’s unusual to find very many candidates for public office who are interested in issues about people at the bottom of the economic scale as [Yee] is,” said Janet Slagter, chair and program coordinator for the women’s studies program. “It’s clearly something she pays attention to and cares about.”
Yee also talked about some of the things society needs to do to encourage more women to pursue political careers, such as provide increased professional support.
“When I think about it, it’s not just necessarily about women running for the sake of running. It’s about, how do we begin to build this community of support for women?” Yee said.
After receiving her bachelor’s in sociology from University of California, Berkeley, and her Master’s in Public Administration from Golden Gate University, Yee served in a number of political offices. Her resume ranges from serving as former chief deputy director for budget with the California Department of Finance, to being a member of the California State Board of Equalization.