Swearengin vs. Perea

Fresno mayoral candidates take harder shots at each other as the Nov. 4 election nears.

Published online on Tuesday, Oct. 14, 2008

Henry T. Perea and Ashley Swearengin are finishing up the longest job interviews of their lives.

Each candidate for mayor has offered ambitious plans to reshape downtown, revitalize decaying neighborhoods and guide Fresno through the economic downturn. Each has raised more than $600,000 to get those messages out to voters.

With the Nov. 4 election about three weeks away, the candidates are working hard to distinguish themselves. And they are taking much harder shots at each other.

For Perea, in his second term on the City Council, that means highlighting his council experience and his ability to work within the city's political framework. Fresno, Perea says, needs an experienced mayor as the city works through tough times, not someone who will have to learn as she goes.

Swearengin sees her ability to bring diverse groups together as one of her greatest strengths. She says that talent overrides her lack of elected experience. Her executive experience -- including as director of the Regional Jobs Initiative, a public-private partnership that seeks to create jobs -- trumps Perea's time as a legislator on the City Council, she says.

Here's a look at how the candidates compare.

Experience

Fresno's mayor is the city's top executive, responsible for overseeing the day-to-day operations. Swearengin and Perea would come at the job from very different backgrounds. Swearengin, 36, has never held elective office. Perea, 31, has never worked outside of government.

Swearengin said her executive experience and independence from "old Fresno" politics separate her from Perea.

"His experience is all in support roles or on the legislative side of the council," Swearengin said. "I've sat in the lead chair. I've initiated programs and seen them through to completion. He can't say that."

Swearengin points to her time as director of the Central Valley Business Incubator as an example of meeting goals and handling payroll.

"The organization had six months worth of funding. I had to raise the money to keep the thing going and to make payroll," she said.

Perea questions Swearengin's description of herself as a businesswoman, saying she never has owned a business. Swearengin said her college degrees in business and her experience handling budgets more than qualify her for the title.

Perea said his experience working with others on the seven-member City Council and with city staffers gives him the skills and experience to run the city from the day he takes office.

Perea said that along with his time on the City Council, he also has worked with state and federal officials on law enforcement training and air quality issues.

Perea said that growing up around politics also made an early impression on him. His father, Fresno County Supervisor Henry R. Perea, was elected to the Fresno Unified school board when he was in junior high school.

"I grew up in a very active household," Perea said. "My parents were always engaged in local issues."

Budget

Fresno's mayor also is responsible for putting together the city's $1 billion annual budget. Most of that money is earmarked for departments or services with set budgets, such as Fresno Yosemite International Airport. But the mayor and council each year must decide how to allocate $250 million of discretionary funding and bring the budget into balance.

Perea says he has played a key role in shaping the city's balanced budgets. Perea said that, unlike Swearengin, his record is open for public review.