State Assembly, District 30
Robert Rivas
Party: Democrat
Occupation: State Assemblymember
Relevant Experience:
- Current Assemblymember
- Member, San Benito County Board of Supervisors
- Professor, Gavilan College
- Senior Clerk, Monterey County Board of Supervisors
- EMT
- Firefighter
- Field Director, Assemblymember Anna Caballero district office
Personal Information:
- Hollister resident
- Wife: Christen
- One child: Melina
- Born and raised in Paicines
Website: http://rivasforassembly.com/
Social Media:
Rivas is a current member of the San Benito County Board of Supervisors, where he says he has fought for more affordable housing and bringing jobs to the county. While serving on the board, he is also working as a professor at Gavilan College teaching political science, and he has acted as an employment specialist and job training coordinator at San Benito High School. Before joining the Board of Supervisors, Rivas worked as a Senior Clerk for the Monterey County Board of Supervisors for two years. He currently serves as the Assemblymember for District 30.
Some of the issues Rivas prioritizes include bringing new jobs, finding solutions to transportation problems, improving education and protecting local farms. Rivas said he authored the Farmworker Housing Act of 2019 to build housing in agricultural communities, and that bill passed. He said he is working with leaders to find solutions for traffic issues in the district, and he authored a grant program that provides grants to teachers in schools that lack qualified educators.
Rivas holds a Bachelor's in Government from CSU Sacramento and a Master's in Public Administration from San Jose State University.
See Rivas' full candidate statement here.
Gregory Swett
Party: Republican
Occupation: Walnut Grower/Trustee
Relevant Experience:
- Walnut Grower
- Board President, Willow Grove Elementary
- Board President, San Benito County Farm Bureau
- Past Treasurer and Operating Director, SBC Singles Farm Labor Camp
Personal Information:
- Lifelong San Benito County resident
- Attended Willow Grove Elementary along with several family members
- Married
- No Children
- Concurrently lived in Berkeley, Kansas City, New York, Houston and Los Altos
Website: http://swettforad30.com/
Swett has worked as a walnut grower in San Benito County for the last 35 years, but he is also part of several boards. He says he is the current board president of Willow Grove Elementary, the school he, his father and his older sister and brother attended. In addition, he said he has worked in operations, finance and computer architecture at a major transportation company.
He said he is a capitalist who hopes to improve spending at the state level. Swett said his goals if elected are to provide better schools, better roads, tolerable transportation options, affordable housing and realistic gas prices. He said he wants to question spending on projects such as the Caltrans project on Highway 25 that was intended to improve road safety.
Swett holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Finance and Accounting from University of California, Berkeley.
Read Swett's full candidate statement here.
District 30
