A Sacramento Superior Court judge ruled Friday that Flojaune Cofer cannot use the word “doctor” on the county election ballot even when immediately followed by the qualifier “public health.” Cofer, a candidate for Sacramento County Supervisor of District 1, had sought to appear before voters with the designation “Doctor, Public Health.”

The lawsuit was brought by resident Richard Dwyer against the Sacramento County Office of Registrar on Monday, March 23, alleging that the designation violates state election law because it refers to Cofer’s academic degree rather than her occupation. Dwyer was represented by attorney Brian Hildreth, who challenged the label under California Elections Code Section 13314.

Judge Jennifer K. Rockwell ruled against Cofer on two grounds: that a reasonable voter seeing the word “doctor” would assume a medical physician, and that ballot designations must reflect a candidate’s profession or vocation, not credential.

“In this country, the common person, if I say this person is a doctor and don’t say anything else, what people will assume is that they are a medical doctor,” Rockwell said. Cofer’s designation, however, included the qualifier “public health.” She has never misrepresented herself as a medical doctor.

Rockwell also acknowledged that “Doctor of Public Health” would have been a more precise and less confusing designation, but California law limits ballot labels to three words. As a result, Cofer opted for a comma in place of the “of.” Rockwell said that without the word “of,” the comma alone is not sufficient to dispel the assumption of medical training.

Cofer, who holds a doctorate in epidemiology from the University of Michigan and has spent over two decades working in public health policy and research, argued that the designation accurately reflected her work. Currently self-employed, she spends much of her professional time speaking, consulting, and engaging on public health issues. 

When Cofer ran for mayor of Sacramento in 2024, her ballot read “Public Health Professional,” but she said she felt her current designation better captured her expertise.

“I am specifically describing the type of work that I do. It’s not just the degree that we’re concerned with, but also the work that I do as an epidemiologist,” Cofer said.

The court found no intent to mislead on Cofer’s part and has agreed to the alternative label “Epidemiologist, Public Health.”

“It’s hard to ignore that this challenge wasn’t about voter confusion. Each year we celebrate Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day and no one assumes he’s a physician. This was about diminishing the expertise I bring as the only public health candidate in this race,” Cofer told the OBSERVER, following the court proceeding. 

Cofer’s main challenger for the Sacramento County Supervisor of District 1 is current Sacramento Councilmember, Eric Guerra. The election is set for June 2, 2026.

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