After 18 years, a polarizing figure in Placer County politics is stepping down

A polarizing figure in Placer County politics is stepping down after 18 years in public service.

Kirk Uhler, a Republican supervisor representing Granite Bay, served in his last Board of Supervisors meeting Tuesday as his fifth and final term winds down. Uhler grabbed headlines this year as a vocal opponent to the state’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic and the effect it’s had on Placer County business owners.

The long-time Granite Bay resident was unanimously commended by the Board of Supervisors for his years of public service, and credited with an “unwavering commitment to fiscal responsibility and stewardship of Placer residents’ tax dollars (that) helped Placer County not only weather the 2008 recession, but recover quickly and go on to thrive,” the commendation read.

Uhler was first elected to the Board of Supervisors in 1993 at age 25, making him the youngest supervisor in Placer County and the second youngest supervisor in California history. After several years working in the private sector, he returned to the board in 2006 to fill a vacancy when Ted Gaines was elected to the state Assembly. He was re-elected three times, losing his last bid for re-election in 2020 to Suzanne Jones.

“More than anything else, what I will miss about being on the Board is the opportunity to engage with people who challenge me, and help build me, and make me a stronger person just by virtue of the issues they force me to address,” Uhler said in a video prepared by county staff.

Uhler has come under fire this year for his position on the COVID-19 pandemic, strongly criticizing Gov. Gavin Newsom’s policies and calling the lockdowns and metrics “arbitrary” on his Facebook page.

In videos posted to his social media pages, Uhler frequently voiced his dissent with state policy and analyzed Placer County data, saying the data showed the pandemic wasn’t serious enough to warrant shutting down Placer businesses.

In September, Uhler and the board voted to end Placer County’s local health emergency.

Supervisor Cindy Gustafson, who represents the Tahoe region, said that while she sometimes did not agree with Uhler, she respected the courage and work ethic he brought to his job.

“You had the courage ... to stand up and take on those critics,” she said. “You always had researched the issues and even if I didn’t agree with you I had to respect the research and perspective that you brought to the decision that you had to make.”

A staff member for Rep. Doug LaMalfa’s office presented Uhler with a certificate of congressional appreciation.

“The residents of Placer County are in really good hands,” Uhler added. “I’m honored that for awhile I got to be one of them. I got to be one of those hands.”