Fresno City Councilmember-elect Annalisa Perea: “I run to win”
Annalisa Perea, who ran away with the Fresno City Council District 1 race in a 4-candidate field, is no stranger to politics.
She canvassed the district for her father and brother, former councilmembers Henry R. and Henry T. Perea. Her father went on to serve on the Fresno County Board of Supervisors, while her brother was elected to the state Assembly.
Annalisa Perea also walked the same district eight years ago in support of Esmeralda Soria when she won a close race to represent the council district that takes up a big chunk of the Tower District and swings westward.
So, when the councilmember-elect takes office in January as the council’s first openly LGBTQ+ member, will her politics be more along those of her father, her brother or Soria?
Neither.
“I’m my own person. I’m very proud of my family’s legacy in public service, but my parents raised us to be independent thinkers and to always do what we think is best at the end of the day,” said Annalisa Perea during a recent interview at a Tower District coffee shop.
Henry R. Perea seconds that thinking.
“I really expect her to be her own person, to be independent,” he said. “I mean, she is very smart. The one thing I always told Henry when he was in office, and I’ve told Annalisa, is that I’ll never give them my opinion unless they ask for it.”
The daughter, who has another brother who is a firefighter, said there is a similarity with her father.
“He taught me to always do your homework; always come to the table prepared,” she said. “I think where we’re a little different is maybe just in beliefs.
“You know, we’re from different generations, and with that comes different mindsets and how we approach different issues.”
People will determine if she follows the political philosophy of her father, brother, Soria or none of them “once I’m on the council.”
Perea, 34, captured 58.76% of the vote (as of the latest official count from June 15), to easily avoid a November runoff. Second-place candidate, Cary Catalano, finished second with 23.92% of the vote.
The current trustee of the State Center Community College District admits the Perea name has currency in local politics, but credits her Election Day victory to “the hard work we put into this campaign.”
Perea launched her campaign 15 months ago, not long after Catalano also began his.
“When we started to track ballots coming in, we noticed a trend across the state, which was a very low voter turnout,” she said. District 1 voter turnout was 23%.
Her campaign knew it had gotten promises from voters, “but if people aren’t voting, then the pledged support is not good to us.”
That triggered a strong get-out-the-vote effort with 30 volunteers daily knocking on doors, reminding voters to turn in their ballots, or making calls to encourage voters to fill out and turn in their ballots.
“Our polling showed that both Democrats and Republicans were leaning towards us,” said Annalisa. “We saw about a 30% Latino return rate, which is pretty good. We knew more likely than not that Latinos would break predominantly for me.”
The Perea campaign, she said, “stuck to the issues that really mattered to District 1 voters.”
“I learned all the issues that were really specific to each neighborhood, and we tailored our messaging and our platform towards that,” said Annalisa, who grew up in southeast Fresno and attended Fresno City College. “I think that resonated with people no matter what their party affiliation was, or no matter how old they were.”
Q. Fifteen months seems like a long time for a campaign, and obviously it did pay off. What was the thinking back then?
“I run to win. And there was too much at stake to not give it my all. I was raised to, no matter what you do, always give it your all. And so that’s exactly what I did. And I’m someone that loves to canvass. And so at the time I think I started it was February, March (of 2021). The weather was good. And so I put on my walking shoes and I just started canvassing the district. I canvassed a lot in 2014 for Esmeralda’s campaign, so I was very familiar with the district already.
“I walked District 1 and in 2016 for my father’s mayoral race, and so I was no stranger to the District 1 neighborhoods. It was just really nice to touch base with a lot of the people and really get to know the specific issues from neighborhood to neighborhood, because a lot of the issues are overarching throughout the district, throughout the city: Public safety, homelessness.
“But canvassing is where you really get to learn which sidewalks need to be redone, which streets need to be repaved. Where street racing is dense from one neighborhood to the next. And yeah, I did my homework and for me it started early.”
Q. How do you prepare to be so disciplined?
“I think being a female, a woman of color, somebody a little bit younger, you know, I think it’s common for people like me to be underestimated or overlooked. And so I believe that I‘m somebody that especially has to do your homework.
“I know that when I walk into the room, I’m more than likely not going to be the smartest person. But I want to be able to show people that I do my homework and I’m ready to take action on things. I’ve always been somebody to do a lot of reading, to do my homework. I don’t take anything lightly. If I’m going to put my heart into something, it’s going to be because I truly do believe that good things are about to happen. You can’t do that if you’re not doing your homework on issues.”
Q. Politics can be pretty rough and tumble. How do you deal with that?
“I’m pretty good about staying out of the fray. Politics is going to have its ups and downs no matter what day of the week it is, no matter what issue you’re talking about. For me, I was raised to have thick skin and to let negativity just slide right off. I think that’s why I’ve had a lot of success in my 34 years here, and I just work hard.
“I keep my head down when I need to and I’m willing to work with people. I don’t care what your party affiliation is when it comes to doing the business of the people, we’re going to come together and we’re going to bring people to the table that may not be at the table already to make these decisions.”
Q. You mentioned your maybe center left as far as politics go. Have you always been that, or is it something that has developed over time?
“I consider myself just level headed. Depending on the issue, I might be a little bit more to one side versus the other. I think that’s something that I’ve definitely developed over the years. You know, I’ve had a lot of experience, especially on the State Center Community College Board, working with people of different backgrounds and belief systems. But at the board, what it came down to is we’re there to do what’s in the best interests of student success.
“So that has required me to change my views on different things and to come to a consensus if I know that we’re doing what’s in the best interest of the students at the end of the day.”
Q. Are you more in tune politically with your brother Henry T. Perea than with your dad because you’re closer in age?
“But, we’re about 10 years apart, so there’s still a bit of an age gap. I have a lot of respect for my brother, too. He’s taken on a lot of huge issues at the state level, especially when it comes down to water and jobs. And so I think we’re going to be very similar when it comes to the issues we’re going to be focusing on. But at the end of the day, I am my own person.”
Q. You volunteered for Esmeralda Soria’s campaign eight years ago. Are you Soria 2.0?
“I’m not Esmeralda 2.0, but I think we’re similar. She’s started a lot of projects here in District 1 that I’m going to be tasked with finishing. Like new park projects, especially one here in the Fresno High area, another west of the 99. And so there’s a lot of good momentum that she has started that I’m going to be finishing for her.
“We’re two totally different people. I think we have different leadership styles. And at the end of the day, you know, she has a good heart and she’s going to do well at the state level. And I’m going to do what I can here to make a name for myself and for the people here.”
Q. Will you be part of the four-member council majority?
“I’m getting to know from each council member what issues are important to them specifically. And so depending on what policy we’re tackling, I could. There might be some days where I’m going to align more with some council members. And there’s going to be other days where I’m going to align more with the other ones. I’ve had conversations with all seven of them. And so they know what issues are important to me and they know that I’m a no nonsense kind of person.
“I’m going to come in and we’re going to do our homework and we’re going to work hard and we’re going to put forth good policies for the city. And I don’t care if you’re the lone Republican or one of the six Democrats, you know, I’m going to work with you so that we can just push forward good policy and hopefully keep the nastiness at bay.”
Q. What kind of job has Mayor Jerry Dyer been doing?
“The mayor has, I think, one of the hardest jobs here in Fresno, and he has to work with seven council members with seven different personalities. I don’t have direct experience working with him, so I don’t know if I can barely give him a grade. But, from what I’ve seen, I have noticed that he has definitely come more to the center than maybe what he typically is used to. And I can respect that. For example, he was at the LGBTQ flag-raising event. I think he took some criticism from people from his own party. But I respect that because he did what was right. If he truly does believe in this One Fresno philosophy, then he’s going to be there standing with us at the LGBTQ flag raising ceremony. And he was there.”
Q. You’ll be the first LGBTQ member of the council. Do you see that as a responsibility or as a challenge?
“I’ll be the first out (LGBTQ), so there could be others before me. There always has to be that first. And I don’t mind breaking those ceilings if it means that I’ll make the next person’s journey easier. Representation does matter. So whether it’s electing more women, more Latinas, more members of the LGBTQ community to the council, you know, people see themselves in other people. And so if someone younger than me or older than me can see themselves in me, and if I can set a positive example for others, I hope to inspire other people like me to step up and to run for office because I’m not going to be elected forever.”
Q. Has the Perea name been a positive or a negative?
“Canvassing, maybe nine out of ten people said, ‘We love your dad, we love your brother. We love what they did for us.’ There’s always that one person that says ‘I can’t stand your family, so I’m not going to vote for you.’ So the name definitely carries pros and cons; more so pros than cons.
“I just told them, ‘You know, I’m my own person at the end of the day. So judge me for me and judge my ideas for what I’m going to be doing for you and your family.’ I tell people I inherited some of my family’s friends and supporters, but all of their enemies. So I’m not afraid to meet with enemies, as long as they’re willing to give me a fair shot at the end of the day. And there’s been a lot of people where they may not have liked my dad or brother, but they like me.
“That just shows that, you know, I am my own person. I come from a family of long public service. I’m very independent and mindful with my own ideas, my own thoughts to what I want to do for Fresno moving forward.”
Complete story: www.vidaenelvalle.com
Esta historia fue publicada originalmente el 17 de junio de 2022, 1:26 p. m..