The Redding Chamber has endorsed Resner, Kelstrom, and Gallagher for the upcoming primary

Earlier this month, the Redding Chamber of Commerce announced its first ever candidate guide for the District 1 and District 5 supervisor elections. Complete with a page-flipping sound effect, the digital pamphlet includes a “scoring card” for each race, providing comparative rankings of the candidates by race, alongside each political hopeful’s answers to the same questions about their visions.

In the past, the Redding Chamber of Commerce has donated to certain candidates as a PAC. The organization ceased its financial activities in 2022 due to political tensions within the business community. 

Last month, Todd Jones, the chamber’s president and CEO, wrote that the chamber’s  candidate guide is a new approach to such advocacy, on behalf of businesses within the chamber’s network. Candidates answered five written questions and participated in an in-person interview. Their responses were scored by the chamber using a consistent method that determined  final rankings.

The goal of the guide, Jones wrote in a letter announcing the document, is “straightforward”: to help voters understand how the business-focused nonprofit has appraised candidates’ orientation to Redding’s economic growth. For Jones, a candidate’s value to local businesses should include an assessment of how they approach non-business issues — as those decisions may directly affect the city’s business landscape. 

“County Supervisors make decisions that affect public safety, homelessness, behavioral health, land use, infrastructure, economic development, budgeting, and the delivery of essential services,” he wrote. “These issues directly affect employers, employees, families, neighborhoods, and the long-term direction of Shasta County.” 

The chamber’s endorsement for District 1 Supervisor was clear: Redding City council member Erin Resner led the pack with a score of 9.3, trailed considerably by the incumbent, Supervisor Kevin Crye, who scored just 5.3. A third candidate for District 1, Richard Gallardo, did not receive a score at all due to failing to sit for an in-person interview. He did respond to written questions that have been included in the guide.

The chamber’s pro-business choice for District 5 Supervisor was more ambiguous. The chamber endorsed both the incumbent, Chris Kelstrom, and his challenger Mike Gallagher, who currently sits on the Anderson City Council. The two scored almost the same on the chamber’s ranking system, with Kelstrom receiving a score of 8.6 and Gallagher a score of 8.7. The third candidate in the race, Gary Oxley, scored 4.3. 

Jones told Shasta Scout that scores are an aggregate number based on how candidates answered multiple questions posed by a committee of local business leaders, saying minor differences in scores can’t be boiled down to a single topic. But generally speaking, he said, candidates who scored higher were able to demonstrate a greater grasp on issues within the supervisors’ jurisdiction, and speak about them with more clarity. 

What were the candidates asked?

According to the scoring methodology outlined in the candidate guide, members of the chamber responded to a survey, identifying key concerns such as economic development, public safety, budget management, permitting and leadership among others. The candidates were then presented with consistent questions that reflected those businesses’ concerns. Candidates were asked about their motivation for running, their campaign priorities, how they would support small businesses, their strategy for incentivizing economic growth and housing development, what they would do to expand jail capacity, and how they would improve the criminal justice system, among other topics.

In order to receive an endorsement from the chamber, candidates had to receive an overall score of above 8.5 and be approved by the chamber’s candidate review committee. Endorsements, the guide indicates, “are intended to identify candidates whose responses demonstrate strong alignment with chamber member priorities and the long-term health of the community.” 

Jones said the chamber focused on just supervisorial candidates for the first iteration of the candidate guide, to ensure the chamber wasn’t taking on too much, too quickly. In November, the guide will likely focus on the Redding City Council.

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