‘Smear campaign’ against Sacramento Councilman Hansen continues. It shows he’s vulnerable
There is one reason and one reason only why Sacramento City Councilman Steve Hansen is being linked to Republicans in election campaign hit pieces that not only haven’t stopped coming, but have proliferated:
Hansen’s opponents see a real opportunity to take him out and replace him with Katie Valenzuela, a candidate that some progressive activists like much better.
You might have seen stories about the “smear campaign” involving Hansen. Last weekend, door hangers appeared at homes in Council District 4, which includes the central city, Land Park, Little Pocket and River Oaks. They contained the words, “We must stand up for our values” above a darkened photo of Hansen and a lovely image of Valenzuela. There were the words, “Steve supports Republicans.” And then the clincher on the flip side of the door hanger: A picture of President Donald Trump with “RESIST LOCALLY.”
When Hansen and Mayor Darrell Steinberg appeared at a press conference together to denounce the 11th-hour political hit piece, it was a clear sign that Steinberg and Hansen are worried. I have not seen any polls to back this up, but people on the ground have been telling me and others that the Hansen-Valenzuela race could actually be a race. We won’t know until March 3, when the results start rolling in.
But the fact that the door hangers have kept coming is a sign that this race could be trouble for Hansen. In the past, when political hit jobs have gone public, it’s been my experience that the people behind them scurry like cockroaches when light is shined on them.
Not this time.
Labor union head defends campaign
On Wednesday, I spoke with John Shaban, a leader of SEIU 1021, the service union funding the door hangers. Campaign disclosure documents put the tab of the campaign at more than $30,000.
And Shaban? He ain’t apologizing. He thinks Hansen hasn’t done enough to support rent control in Sacramento. He thinks Hansen is more comfortable representing monied interests than people in his district who are struggling to make ends meet. Shaban said he is not satisfied with city efforts to control rents, calls them half measures. He wants a citizens rent control board in place, which Steinberg and Hansen oppose.
Valenzuela agrees with him and so the door hangers keep coming.
“Corporate landlords are vampires, they are exploiting the heck out of people,” Shaban said. “You see gentrification and people displaced by it. As we become a bigger city, there are forces that will come to bear on progressive issues.”
That last statement is the crux of what is going on here: Rent control forces see an opportunity to get one of their own, Valenzuela, on what is largely a City Council of moderate Democrats.
Why claim that Hansen supports Republicans? Well, he supported District Attorney Anne Marie Schubert in her last run in 2018. She was a Republican then, but not anymore, She is now registered as “No Party Preference.” That’s a pretty skimpy record upon which to lay the accusation of Hansen supporting Republicans. Putting Trump on the same mailer with Hansen is outright ridiculous.
Hansen’s endorsement of Schubert got him booted from the local Democratic Party. The same goes for Councilman Eric Guerra, who is also up for re-election. Hansen accused Shaban and others of homophobia for targeting the first openly gay member of the City Council. Some have wondered why SEIU 1021 didn’t target Guerra as well.
“Because Guerra doesn’t have an opponent,” Shaban said. In truth, Guerra does have an opponent but not a particularly serious one. The door hangers prove that Hansen does have an opponent serious enough to generate hit pieces targeting him.
Katie Valenzuela a serious contender
Valenzuela has said all the right things about how she doesn’t approve of the door hangers, but come on. She is benefiting from them. If this race is close, they could push her over the top.
So she shouldn’t be able to have her cake and eat it too. If she is truly outraged by the door hangers, she could explicitly demand that Shaban pull the plug on them. Her comments about the door hangers have not been very convincing. I’m not saying she is conspiring with Shaban, but she is benefiting. Let’s at least be honest.
The truth is that Hansen is vulnerable. And his campaign spending suggests he’s worried: he has spent roughly $115,000 on campaign literature and political consultants since Jan. 1, according to the most recent campaign finance records filed with the city.
Truthfully, Hansen has been one of the most effective council members in Sacramento. He’s the guy who played a big role in getting Jump Bikes into Sacramento. He’s been a calming voice who has struck compromises on city budget issues. He has really grown from the young councilman who had a knack for rubbing people the wrong way by seeming condescending or dismissive. To me, he’s not that guy anymore.
But he represents city districts that have grown more progressive and Land Park residents angered by a proliferation of homelessness. Friends of Hansen have told me they are worried about him.
If they are, they better get out and knock on doors for him this weekend.
The door hanger hit piece is no doubt misleading. It’s the worst kind of bare knuckle politics. But the people behind it are not running away – they are doubling down. They see Hansen’s race as a test case for a change in politics in the city.
We’ll see if they are right.
Editor’s note: A previous version of this story reported Josie Morales-Cannon had identified herself as a resident of City Council District 4. Sacramento County election officials confirmed that her residence is not in Hansen’s district.
This story was originally published February 26, 2020 at 2:22 PM.
