{"id":463405,"date":"2026-09-14T14:48:27","date_gmt":"2026-09-14T14:48:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/463405\/"},"modified":"2026-09-14T14:48:27","modified_gmt":"2026-09-14T14:48:27","slug":"what-to-know-about-sacramento-countys-district-1-board-of-supervisors-race","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/463405\/","title":{"rendered":"What to know about Sacramento County\u2019s District 1 Board of Supervisors race"},"content":{"rendered":"

Voters this fall will decide who should replace Phil Serna<\/a> on the Sacramento County Board of Supervisors. The longtime District 1 supervisor will step down in January after holding the office since first being elected in 2010.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The two candidates vying for the seat are epidemiologist and Sacramento\u2019s 2024 mayoral runner-up Dr. Flo Cofer and Sacramento City Councilmember Eric Guerra.<\/p>\n

The county board is made up of five supervisors that collectively represent about 1.6 million residents. Each supervisor represents more than 300,000 residents in their respective districts. They make decisions on how the county spends its $9.2 billion budget and oversee agencies like the sheriff\u2019s and district attorneys offices, along with a wide array of county health agencies.<\/p>\n

District 1 makes up half of the city of Sacramento including Natomas, Del Paso Heights, Central Sacramento, East Sacramento, Oak Park, and parts of South Sacramento.\u00a0<\/p>\n

In contrast to city governments, counties are the authority on health and human services and work closely with state and federal governments. They manage the distribution of federally-funded government benefits such as housing vouchers and the food assistance program CalFresh.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Sacramento County is facing tough waters. It passed a balanced budget in June, but had to make cuts to address a shortfall of approximately $100 million this year<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Whoever replaces Serna on the board will also grapple with the Sacramento region\u2019s homeless crisis. For decades, Sacramento\u2019s city and county officials have struggled <\/a>to work together to combat homelessness in the region. Many residents are seeking more action from elected officials, making it a political flash point.\u00a0<\/p>\n

CapRadio sat down with candidates Cofer and Guerra to get a sense of their priorities and why they\u2019re running for election.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Dr. Flo Cofer\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"Dr.Epidemiologist Flojaune Cofer is running for Sacramento County Supervisor District 1, this November.Courtesy of Flo Cofer\u00a0Age: 43<\/p>\n

Notable Endorsements: SEIU Local 1000, California Nurses Association, Sierra Club\u00a0<\/p>\n

Cofer moved to Sacramento two decades ago for a fellowship at the California Department of Public Health and is originally from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.\u00a0<\/p>\n

She has been an epidemiologist for 20 years, holding numerous high level positions such as the Senior Director of State Policy for Public Health Advocates.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Cofer, who lives in Tower Village, said one of the reasons she chose to run for county supervisor is because of her professional background.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cIt’s important that on a five-member board that controls $9 to $10 billion a year, that you have at least one person who has a background in public health, and currently we have none,\u201d Cofer said.<\/p>\n

She told CapRadio that the Trump Administration’s Big Beautiful Bill poses great risk to county residents relying on food assistance benefits, and that there are also challenges surrounding public health in general.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201c\u200aMy joke is always, I think I’m uniquely positioned to be in public service because I come from public health, and we have limited authority and almost no money,\u201d Cofer said. \u201cYet we find a way to get things done. And so I don’t look at not having money as our biggest obstacle.\u201d<\/p>\n

Cofer is a familiar face in Sacramento politics: She narrowly lost the Sacramento mayoral race in 2024<\/a> to Kevin McCarty.<\/p>\n

Cofer said through that race she realized how much people in Sacramento want a functional government and how much they care about homelessness.<\/p>\n

\u201c\u200aI in some ways feel guilty for running for mayor, in part because I wanted to create change in our community and not necessarily seeing the county as the vehicle for that,\u201d Cofer said. \u201cEven though they are the ones who get the health and human services dollars and are responsible for homelessness.\u201d<\/p>\n

Cofer said homelessness is one of her key priorities. She added that she realizes the county and city have not had an effective relationship.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cMany of us have worked in a workplace where there’s someone who’s responsible for something and they’re not doing it, and slowly the mission creep happens where everybody else starts taking over that responsibility,\u201d she said. \u201cThat is what has happened with the county. The county has not been the proactive leader that they should be on this.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Cofer told CapRadio the region needs more direct communication and regional coordination spearheaded by the county, and less inefficiency.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201c\u200aI have the personal phone numbers of everyone who sits on the city council and the mayor. Cofer said. \u201cI am a collaborator by nature.\u201d<\/p>\n

Communication issues aside, Cofer said she believes the county could use its resources more efficiently for both homelessness and other issues like road maintenance.<\/p>\n

\u201cEvery year we act like this is the only year that exists and we don\u2019t plan for the future,\u201d she said. \u201cThat ends up with us having challenges like $1 billion in deferred road maintenance for county controlled roads.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"FlojauneFlojaune Cofer, a public health professional and candidate for Sacramento County Supervisor District 1, speaks during a candidate forum at the Coloma Community Center in Sacramento on April 9, 2026.Tony Rodriguez\/CapRadio<\/p>\n

Cofer is a proponent of having a public bank as a way to spend dollars more intentionally. She said that would avoid paying unnecessary fees and interest on county money.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201c\u200aI am really supportive of a proposal to have a public bank for Sacramento County,\u201d she said.\u00a0 \u201cSo that your tax dollars are better spent without having to ask any taxpayers to give us more money.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Cofer said she plans to use her community organizing background and grow her social media influence to reach constituents. She added that she views this election as an opportunity to reimagine the future.<\/p>\n

\u201cAll of this is made up, every rule, everything we live under right now is made up, and we can make up a different future where literally everybody has what they need,\u201d she said. \u201cIt is going to require some change, and it is going to be different than it is right now. But different is not worse. Different can be better.\u201d<\/p>\n

Eric Guerra<\/p>\n

\"EricDistrict 6 Sacramento City Councilmember Eric Guerra is running against Dr. Flo Cofer to succeed Phil Serna as Sacramento County’s District 1 supervisor.Courtesy of Eric Guerra<\/p>\n

Age: 48<\/p>\n

Notable Endorsements: Sacramento Stonewall Democrats, Sacramento Police Officers Association, U.S. Congresswoman Doris Matsui<\/p>\n

Guerra represents the Sacramento City Council\u2019s District 6, which includes Campus Commons, Sierra Oaks, Tahoe Park and Little Saigon among other South Sacramento neighborhoods.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI can directly relate to the challenges that families have today,\u201d he said. \u201cThe challenges of housing, the challenges of being able to find stable employment and the challenges of being able to provide for your kids.\u201d<\/p>\n

Guerra noted the county has to make stressful decisions about issues like homelessness, which is his No. 1 priority. Guerra said the county needs to do better on addressing the issue.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cOur police and firefighters are going out everyday and they\u2019re seeing the same people all the time,\u201d he said. \u201cIf we don\u2019t get that it is the county\u2019s responsibility for behavioral health, substance abuse issues, it\u2019s going to continue to affect all of us.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

He grew up in Yolo County and comes from a family of migrant farm workers. Guerra moved to Sacramento in 1996 to attend Sacramento State, where he obtained a bachelor\u2019s degree in electrical engineering and a master\u2019s degree in urban economics.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Guerra has been in his seat on the city council since 2015 and has been a member of the California Air Resource Board since 2023.\u00a0<\/p>\n

He said he\u2019s running for the Board of Supervisors seat because he believes District 1 needs a politician that can understand the issues facing residents today.<\/p>\n

Guerra said representing South Sacramento on the council has given him a good picture of the strengths the city has and doesn\u2019t have. Guerra had to work with the county and state to help start the Stockton Boulevard Safe Stay tiny home shelter.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt has behavioral health,\u201d Guerra said. \u201cBut I had to bring in the county and the city and the state to look at how to partner this.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

In terms of the county\u2019s financial position, Guerra said that they need to manage their resources wisely and look to grow their way out of their ongoing financial deficit.<\/p>\n

\u201cI can directly relate to the challenges that families have today,\u201d he said. \u201cThe challenges of housing, the challenges of being able to find stable employment and the challenges of being able to provide for your kids.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"EricEric Guerra pictured with his family. Guerra is a current Sacramento City Councilmember running for Sacramento’s Board of Supervisors District 1 seat.Courtesy of Eric Guerra<\/p>\n

Guerra noted the county has to make stressful decisions about issues like homelessness, which is his No. 1 priority. Guerra said the county needs to do better on addressing the issue.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cOur police and firefighters are going out everyday and they\u2019re seeing the same people all the time,\u201d he said. \u201cIf we don\u2019t get that it is the county\u2019s responsibility for behavioral health, substance abuse issues, it\u2019s going to continue to affect all of us.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cWe need to figure out how to create more local jobs here so that they (workers) can be close,\u201d he said. \u201cWhen your kid gets sick at school and you have to work an hour and a half away, that’s a problem.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Guerra, who was previously the president of the Tahoe Park Neighborhood Association, said he intends to use his background in neighborhood advocacy to inform how he connects with constituents, if elected.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe need to make sure that someone who is running for local government is focused on those critical issues.\u201d he said. \u201cThe bigger issue for a county is, \u2018Am I going to make a difference in the life of my neighbor today?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n


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