Martha Abraham hopes to unseat an incumbent San Diego City Councilmember \u2013 Henry Foster, which has only happened a handful of times over the past three and a half decades. Both candidates are Democrats, but the race has starkly divided their community, over issues including housing and license plate readers. Only 12 votes separated them during the primary. Abraham sat down with NBC 7 Political Reporter Joey Safchik on Politically Speaking this morning. <\/p>\n
A transcript of that interview is below.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Safchik: It’s a race that many didn’t expect to be particularly competitive. But then only 12 votes separated incumbent city councilmember Henry Foster from challenger Martha Abraham in the primary, and thus began a bitter contest. Martha Abraham is the newcomer giving Foster a run for his money in District Four. Metaphorically, at least. She’s got a lot less cash on hand. She’s here with me now to make her case. Thank you for being here.<\/p>\n
Abraham: Thank you for having me.<\/p>\n
Safchik: You are a neonatal nurse. City council is a full time job in San Diego. Why would you want to make this move? This seems like a thankless job.<\/p>\n
Abraham: Well, you know, I never thought that I would go into politics. It was never on my, you know, plan in my life. But what I realized when I was fighting at the front lines of a lot of the issues in our community, was that a lot of the issues that we deal with at the hospital actually stem from city policy.<\/p>\n
Safchik: Like what? Give me an example.<\/p>\n
Abraham: So we deal with a lot of premature births, right. Moms that are having babies prematurely. We don’t know the cause of premature births, but we know that their diet, the environments that they live in can trigger them to have higher blood pressure, which kind of forces them to have their babies early. We live in a community where our life expectancy is lower than any other area in the county of San Diego. Our aries are full of toxins and pollutants. We don’t have access to fresh food. We don’t have access to quality care. So all those things in our environment really impact our health. And, they can cause more health concerns for the residents that live in our community. So, I really just saw that, you know, as a nurse and having a holistic perspective, how much of an impact I could have as one person on an entire community just by making decisions. When we consider the whole person and not looking at really like each individual thing as a silo.<\/p>\n
Safchik: How would you describe your politics?<\/p>\n
Abraham: How would I describe my politics? It’s putting people at the center of the decisions that are being made and really considering what’s their best interest. Being a nurse, we are public servants. And so our mission is always to do what is in the best interests of people. We’ve taken an oath to do no harm. And so I plan on maintaining that oath when I go to City Hall. And so it’s really about just bringing people back to the center of the decisions we make.<\/p>\n
Safchik: You’re a Democrat. This is a Democrat versus Democrat race. The Voice of San Diego said \u201cAbraham’s politics are not easy to categorize.\u201d Do you think that’s a good thing or a bad thing?<\/p>\n
Abraham: I’ve realized that I probably am more complex. My ideas are more complex than most would. Categorize only because my ideas and perspectives is really just based on my life experience and the struggles that I’ve been through. Not necessarily because I identify with a certain group. As a nurse, I don’t have the privilege of judging someone. It’s really just, it’s fundamental humanity. We treat everyone the same, and regardless of how they identify who they are, we still have to help them. And so that is really the basis of how I go about treating people. And when it comes to policy or my ideas. And so that’s probably why it can seem more complex than it actually is. But it’s really just about doing the right thing for people, for human beings, as human beings, we all should respect each other and then we should also consider everyone’s well-being.<\/p>\n
Safchik: Let’s talk policy. If you could fix one thing about district four, what would it be?<\/p>\n
Abraham: One of our biggest issues is economic disinvestment. So we really need to bring economic opportunity into our district.<\/p>\n
Safchik: How do you do that?<\/p>\n
Abraham: So what we do is we partner with organizations that can come into our community. One organization is UCSD. They are quality health organizations that we lack in our community, but they also can provide our community jobs through community benefits agreements. And they’re union workers. So they’re going to have a fair wage, fair, better working conditions. And so, I am really looking to bring opportunity to the people that live in D4, so that we can work, play and live in our community. They’ve also talked about workforce partnerships with the kids that are in our community that want to go into medicine and creating a pathway for them so that they have access to opportunity. And so my focus is really about addressing the social determinants of health. I believe if we just address those fundamental basics, then a lot of other things will be able to improve.<\/p>\n
Safchik: Have you presented enough concrete policy ideas and your vision for how you would back them up and bring them to fruition over the course of this campaign?<\/p>\n
Abraham: So the thing is, is that many of the things that I that residents in our community and things that we want to see in our community don’t necessarily require a policy. There are things that the city already has in place that we can apply. I think it takes more political will and accountability. Working with other leaders, collaborating with people and really fighting for the resources that we need. One example is the park master plan. They’ve already identified that there’s inequities in parks south of the eight and how funds are being dispersed and prioritized. The city has committed to doing a citywide park DIFee [development impact fee], and even though they’ve moved to that citywide park DIFee, we still are not seeing the improvements in our community. And so I have to ask, you know, why is that? And really do the digging to understand where is the money being spent? Because I have watched city council meetings and there’s three parks in D1 that are being funded while our parks are still in the same condition that they were when they were originally built. So, the city already has a plan to move equity forward, and I think it’s not just talking about it, but actually putting results behind making sure that we hold them accountable to that.<\/p>\n
Safchik: What makes you think you could make that happen if it hasn’t happened thus far?<\/p>\n
Abraham: I believe that, working with different city leaders like our new COO, who’s already said that she wants to push equity forward, and having a working relationship and collaborative relationship with the city, the city leaders is important. I don’t know if we have that right now. And so I think sometimes the way that we treat people or the way that our leaders treat people can impact what the residents in the community, actually the resources that they get.<\/p>\n
Safchik:\u00a0 You said in an Instagram post, quote, \u201can entire establishment is working against us.\u201d What do you mean by that?<\/p>\n
Abraham: Well, I think we have seen these press conferences and press conferences and things that have been said on social media regarding me and my campaign. And I think it’s interesting how they choose to attack a person instead of actually talking about their own, the issues and and talking about the candidate and his platform. And so to me, that’s not leadership. It’s just deflection.<\/p>\n
Safchik: Do you think people are voting for you or against your opponent or both?<\/p>\n
Abraham: I think both, I think district four residents understand that there needs to be change and what we have been doing has not worked. The status quo was not working for us. And so they believe that nurses have been ranked the most trusted profession in the last 40 years. You know, and I feel like nurses are the best fit to serve in public office, because we literally have our hands and knees in society’s mess trying to solve these problems, not realizing that they are stemming from city policies. So, I think they trust and believe that, you know, I’m competent enough to be able to tackle these issues.<\/p>\n
Safchik:\u00a0 You have the backing of some people who don’t always agree, whether you sought their support or not. Let’s say the mayor and some of his most vocal community opponents. Why do you think that is?<\/p>\n
Abraham: So I don’t have the support of the mayor. I haven’t ever sought the support of the mayor. He has\u2013<\/p>\n
Safchik: You don’t seek support to receive it, though, right?<\/p>\n
Abraham: Oh, well, I mean, I don’t know what he’s doing, but it hasn’t been solicited by me at all.<\/p>\n
Safchik: You haven’t had a conversation.<\/p>\n
Abraham: I’ve never spoken to him. Nope. Never met with him. And so what he’s doing. I’m not sure you know what that’s about.<\/p>\n
Safchik:\u00a0 Do you think that could be an enemy of my enemy is my friend kind of situation?<\/p>\n
Abraham: Maybe, I don’t know. I don’t know, and I can’t speak to it because, honestly, I haven’t spoken to him and or anyone. That’s part of his team. So I’m not sure what his agenda is or even if that narrative is even true.<\/p>\n
Safchik: Do you worry that association with him could be toxic for you?<\/p>\n
Abraham: Absolutely. You know, the mayor, unfortunately, is not the most liked person in our city. And I have run my campaign, like, without any establishment help. I’m not endorsed by any other candidates or elected officials. And so it’s important for me to continue to be a people-powered campaign and win this with people.<\/p>\n
Safchik: How do you feel about Mayor Gloria? Would you reject his official endorsement?<\/p>\n
Abraham: I wouldn’t accept an official endorsement. But I do understand that as a city council member, he would be my colleague. And he’s someone that I’m going to have to work with to get the resources that our community has been long waiting for.<\/p>\n
[Note: While we were taping this interview, the Mayor\u2019s office confirmed the Mayor has not endorsed Abraham, nor met her.]<\/p>\n
Safchik: You have taken some heat for being a little wishy-washy on whether you support Flock. Your Instagram post about the city’s relationship with flock says, quote, my stance is clear and driven by data. Mistakes have been made. We need an independent audit of who has access to the data. What exactly is your clear stance?<\/p>\n
Abraham: So as a nurse, my priority is always going to be keeping people safe. So there are people that feel safe with the cameras or people that don’t want the cameras. And I understand both, both sides of it. And so it’s important for me to really evaluate the evidence and the information that we have to make an informed decision to make sure that we are actually protecting and keeping people safe.<\/p>\n
Safchik: If you were on the committee today and had to vote on whether to cancel the Flock contract today, do you know where you would land?<\/p>\n
Abraham: I don’t have the information I need to be able to make, like, a concrete decision on it. And it’s not that I’m being wishy-washy. It’s that, like, I really want to protect people, and I really want people to be safe and feel safe. Just like there’s people that don’t want Flock, there’s also people that do in our community.<\/p>\n
Safchik: But if you’re their elected official, you’re speaking for them. They’re putting their faith in you to make a decision on this. This has been going on for a really long time. We have access to lots of public information. Why don’t you feel like you would be able to take a firm stance on this right now?<\/p>\n
Abraham: Because there’s public information, but it’s important to evaluate San Diego’s data, like we’ve heard of the stories of what has happened in other cities. And if those things are happening here, then absolutely. 100%, like we can’t continue with it, but we don’t know that. And I don’t know if there’s been an independent audit of who has had access to the data. If the data is actually reflecting what they’re saying it does, does it really reduce crime? How much crime has it really solved? And so for me, it’s really about making an informed decision. I have been\u2013 it’s not something that I’ve been running on. And I think it’s interesting that there’s this new fascination with it, and it’s something that my opponent has decided to run on.<\/p>\n
Safchik: Why do you think this is such a pressing issue in your community? You allude to that in your Instagram post.<\/p>\n
Abraham: I think that it’s, something that has been, like, a lot of attention has been on recently.<\/p>\n
Safchik: Do you think that attention is warranted?<\/p>\n
Abraham: I believe that that attention is, it’s not a surprise that it’s an election. It’s around election season that this is going on. And I believe that it’s honestly a distraction by my opponent because he can’t talk about the accomplishments or his own stance on the things that he’s done in the last two and a half years. And now he’s trying to push through this whole conversation about flock to stand and say that he did something. But in the last two years, we can’t point to what he’s actually accomplished.<\/p>\n
Safchik: Have you thought about filing public records requests so that you could have that information at your disposal?<\/p>\n
Abraham: Well, Joey, I work a full time job and I run a good campaign, so if I could and I had the time, I would. But right now, I’m really focused on addressing, like, the issues of what community members have said to me that are, you know, pressing to them. And that is definitely something that I will tackle once I get there. But for right now, I would like, I am focused on the issues.<\/p>\n
Safchik: You’re saying you see this as a red herring of sorts, as a distraction, but we have seen how active the community has been. We’ve seen them showing up for rally after rally. This issue has not gone away. Why do you think it matters so much to your would-be constituents?<\/p>\n
Abraham: Well, the thing is, we also have to remember, this city council has approved Flock in the budget the last two years. So now there’s this big push to get it removed. They’ve approved $4 million towards Flock. But now there’s this big push to get it removed. They’ve also been offered to remove all cameras from their districts. They didn’t agree to that, but now they’re pushing to get it removed. This is the kind of politics that I think San Diego ins are tired of. And, it’s time that we just get back to putting people at the forefront and making those decisions and not just making these grandstanding standing statements.<\/p>\n
Safchik: The firefighters union withdrew their support of your opponent. Threw that weight behind you. What do you attribute that to?<\/p>\n
Abraham: Well, the firefighters have gone without a contract since July. They’re the lowest paid firefighters in the region. Fire station 51 has been in a temporary structure for the last 11 years. While there’s been other structures that have been built. So, I empathize with their frustration. This just this year, the nurses, we were on strike fighting for our own contract and for working conditions and protecting our patients. And so we went on the strike line for five weeks without pay. So I empathize with their frustration. Nurses and firefighters are cut from the same cloth. And I am absolutely honored that they decided to endorse me. And I will say that he also had the opportunity to be interviewed for that endorsement, and he chose not to.<\/p>\n
Safchik: How would you fund a permanent station 51?<\/p>\n
Abraham: So the fire department already generates revenue and so I think it’s important that we reevaluate how we’re spending that revenue and hopefully give them some autonomy about where those funds should be. Disseminated. But again, there’s been four of the fire stations that have been built and other fire stations that have been remodeled. So I think this is about a priority. It’s more of a about priorities and about like, where is the money going to come from?<\/p>\n
Safchik: We’re told from city documents that it could cost some $31 million. We know the city is in pretty dire budget straits, right. Would you be willing to cut other city programs or divert money from other city programs in order to fund this? Like where does this fall on your list of priorities?<\/p>\n
Abraham: Yeah, so they are currently funding a fire, a brand new fire station to be built on Fairmont. So I think the resources behind doing that should be directed towards station 51 first. And any resources that we are able to gather to go towards that before we’re building new fire stations in our district.<\/p>\n
Safchik: Your community activism has focused largely on housing. Why do you feel like your housing plan is better than what the city has been pursuing?<\/p>\n
Abraham: I think most San Diegans can agree with me. We’ve been fighting these issues for the last four years. And 69% of San Diegans have said that the city council is going in the wrong direction. And I think it just goes back to like, people being heard. Community members don’t feel heard about the concerns that they’re bringing up. You know, there’s legitimate concerns or safety concerns. We’re not anti-housing. We just want a balanced approach that’s supported by infrastructure and that we have actual communities where we can thrive.<\/p>\n
Safchik: What would you like to see? What plans would you put on the table when it comes to housing?<\/p>\n
Abraham: So our community plan already does a great job with increasing density and creating new housing opportunities in our district.<\/p>\n
Safchik: Just to be clear, do you support development of new housing?<\/p>\n
Abraham: Absolutely. Yeah. I think that we’re going to have to create pathways to homeownership. And part of the way of doing that is through middle housing. And we can really do that in our corridors and where our trolley line is.<\/p>\n
Safchik: And so does that mean condos?<\/p>\n
Abraham: Yeah, condos and townhomes. Yeah. So, I think that those are great opportunities where we can provide housing opportunities for residents.<\/p>\n
Safchik: We got into this a little, but a lot has been made of the endorsements you’ve received or allegedly received over the course of this campaign, some of which, again, as we’ve talked about, you did not seek out, but people can still say they support you, right? You can choose whether to accept that. You’re neutral. Why do you think that has sucked up so much oxygen in this campaign?<\/p>\n
Abraham: Because they don’t have anything else to talk about except. But anyway.<\/p>\n
Safchik: Who’s they?\u00a0<\/p>\n
Abraham: Well, I mean, the opposition that is creating this narrative continues to attack me instead of actually talking about their own candidate and the platform that he has. And. As far as the endorsements, like some of these endorsements that I have not solicited for or were actually like, didn’t or it was inaccurately reported. But when it comes to some of the other endorsements, I want you to also know and remember that, like he went for these interviews as well. You know, and would we still be having this conversation if they chose to endorse him?<\/p>\n
Safchik: Current elected officials have blasted you for a connection with San Diego United Communities. A spokesperson for that group said, you are not a member, but they did endorse you. Again, whether you choose to accept that or not is up to you. How would you characterize that relationship?<\/p>\n
Abraham: So I will say that my fight for my community started four years ago before San Diego United Communities was a group. And I decided to run for city council before San Diego, United communities was also a group. And so, I think that, like, the root of this is my message actually resonates with people all across the board. It’s not just a message directed at one group of people. And I think that’s a beautiful thing. I am really here to put people first and advocate for communities and so that resonates with them. And like you said, I can’t control what they say and they do. But, they are not pushing or backing my campaign whether they choose to endorse me, that’s their choice.<\/p>\n
Safchik: You’ve also got the endorsement of some business groups like the Downtown Partnership, the Chamber of Commerce. What do you make of those?<\/p>\n
Abraham: I think it’s a beautiful thing that I can be a union member. But then also, you know, a small business owner and I can bring to different groups together that we traditionally don\u2019t see, that’s not done. And so again, it speaks to making sure people are heard and putting people at the forefront of the decisions that we’re making. And I can tell you that the biggest devastation in district four is that the businesses cannot sustain in our community, and they refuse to come there. And if we’re really going to talk about bringing in revenue to the community and providing opportunity for small businesses and businesses, is it part of the way that we have to do that?<\/p>\n
Safchik: Why didn’t you end up participating in that Politifest forum between you and your opponent?<\/p>\n
Abraham: So when it comes to journalism, I believe that as a journalist you verify your facts and you try to avoid misleading the public. I believe that they have a bias and you see a story, but I’ve experienced a pattern behind the scenes and the private conversations that we’ve had. And so I don’t believe that they can be neutral. They haven\u2019t been neutral. And, that’s why I decided not to attend Politifest.<\/p>\n
Safchik: What have you learned during this campaign?<\/p>\n
Abraham: It’s not always easy when you’re fighting for the right things. It really, I never thought that just to do the right thing and to, like, really advocate for people and advocate for a community. It would cost everything that it has, like, you know, the amount of emotional, spiritual toll that it’s taken. The time, the amount of time and the commitment that I’ve spent, trying to really do the right thing. And it’s a it’s every day I have to remind myself that my community is absolutely worth everything that I’m going through. And, there is a purpose and a reason why I’m here. And I’m on this path. And, God willing, things work out. But it’s really for the community.<\/p>\n
Safchik: Finally, you’ve portrayed yourself as an outsider. You’re not rising through the ranks of City Hall. Why do you think you’re qualified?<\/p>\n
Abraham: Well, like I said earlier, nurses are the most qualified people to run for public office because we’re actually dealing with social issues every day and trying to create solutions to these social problems, not knowing that our issue actually stems from local policy and we are problem oriented, we are solution driven and people centered. I have taken an oath to do no harm, and I think that that’s what’s missing at City Hall. If we all took an oath to do no harm and put people first, I think we’d be better off as a city.<\/p>\n
Safchik: Thank you so much for being here and being very generous with your time this morning.<\/p>\n
Abraham: Thank you.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Martha Abraham hopes to unseat an incumbent San Diego City Councilmember \u2013 Henry Foster, which has only happened…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":505640,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[28],"tags":[7257,13,74,13134,76,75],"class_list":["post-505639","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-san-diego","tag-politically-speaking","tag-politics","tag-san-diego","tag-san-diego-city-council","tag-san-diego-headlines","tag-san-diego-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/505639","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=505639"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/505639\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/505640"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=505639"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=505639"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=505639"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}