Pointed attacks flew fast and furious in a spirited Modesto Focus debate between Republicans Marie Alvarado-Gil and Alexandra Duarte and Democrat Jaron Brandon. At one point Alvarado-Gil, the first-term incumbent in this state Senate race, observed, “This is not for the faint of heart.”
When not sniping at each other, the three covered much ground on issues such as food insecurity and affordability in Senate District 4, which includes Stanislaus County and also sprawls throughout the Mother Lode. The top two candidates on the June 2 ballot, regardless of party, will advance to the November election.
Here is a transcript of the debate, edited for brevity and clarity:
Opening statements
Duarte: I’m a mom and a farmer. I want to bring President Trump’s agenda to Sacramento and make California great again. District 4 has very real challenges and very real opportunities. We need principled, focused and effective leadership, someone who will fight for our rural communities, for our resource industries and our working families, not a politician who abuses her office and brings embarrassment to her community and herself. I am going to crack down on crime, cut taxes and expose fraud and abuse. We can make California great again.
Brandon: I grew up in a trailer park about an hour outside Modesto. I’m about a half mile away from that park now, where I am a recent homeowner, one who drives a used car, rents rooms out of my house to be able to make it work. I was first in my family to go to college and the only one born and raised locally in this race. I’m also a two-term county supervisor in Tuolumne County. I’m the only candidate in this race that’s actually delivered real results, and I’ve done that from a much smaller county with fewer resources and fewer staff. I’ve actually cut waste, fraud, abuse and overhead, streamlined government red tape and built up reserves in our budget for public safety and infrastructure. What we need in Sacramento is somebody who can actually get it done and is not all talk. I’m not a multimillionaire. I don’t have the right last name that enters me into this race. I didn’t lie to voters to win and then switch on them. I just stepped up to serve in my own backyard. I’m a Democrat who has served in a very Republican district and been reelected on a record of actually getting stuff done. My opponents can make big promises because nobody here expects them to deliver on anything. I’m not a status quo candidate. I’m looking to be something different and my promises aren’t empty. So it boils down to one black and white question: Who can actually deliver results, and who is up here just talking about issues? I’m running because these two cannot deliver those results.
Alvarado-Gil: I stand for parent rights and education, Second Amendment protections and no new taxes. I’m the only candidate with a proven record of results to over a million people in the Sierras and Central Valley, that includes passing bills in the double digits and returning hundreds of millions of dollars back to the district. On Aug. 8, 2024 I made history as the first person in 80 years to walk away from the Democratic supermajority in Sacramento, and I proudly reregistered as a Republican. California has always been my home. I navigated the foster care system as a kid, survived sexual abuse in my teens, broke free from domestic violence in my 20s, raised three amazing children, two with special needs, putting myself through college while working full time to make it as a single parent in my 30s, only to fight and win two battles with cancer in my 40s. I transformed pain into dutiful purpose, and that purpose is fighting every day for a safer and more affordable California.
ICE and immigration
Question: Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents recently shot a man in Patterson, which is part of Senate District 4. California state law currently restricts how local and state law enforcement works with federal immigration officials. What should be the state Legislature’s role in addressing immigration?
Alvarado-Gil: The state Legislature’s role is protecting Californians and ensuring that our laws are adequate. I want to commend Stanislaus County, PD, CHP and Patterson PD for providing assistance but not being involved in this tragic loss in Patterson. ICE raids have hit close to home, but we know that with open borders under the Biden administration, we have millions of people here that we don’t know who they are, many that are able to access welfare services or who have criminal records. So my stance is to support ICE in enforcing federal laws.
Brandon: A lot is the federal administration, (but) it is such a cop out to wash their hands of this in the Legislature and say, ‘We’re just standing by waiting to see if we can be helpful.’ What is happening is a federal invasion of a paramilitary organization ramped up to $100 billion which is the size of the Italian military, coming in to do door knocks, administrative knocks, no warrants, knocking down doors, shootings that are now killing people in the Central Valley. They are discriminating against people who are speaking Spanish based on race, based on the work that they do. They are picking them up at court sites and job sites and picking up kids. I’m running against an incumbent that called a bill child trafficking when it was actually if kids had their parents deported, they could have an emergency guardian pick them up at school. We have to abolish and reformat ICE to actually serve and protect people, not wage war on our community.
Duarte: Sacramento sanctuary state policies supported by Marie do not allow our local law enforcement to communicate with federal law enforcement. Marie said that she would not support deportation. We need to allow local enforcement to communicate with federal enforcement. I have the endorsements of Sheriff Dirkse, our deputy sheriffs and the Modesto Police Officers Association, and I will work very closely with them to make sure they have the support they need from the state to keep our local community safe.
Alvarado-Gil: I stood with tens of thousands of faith believers that came to the Capitol to say no to Assembly Bill 495 that allowed strangers to take children out of schools, and I stand by that vote. I do not stand against deportation. I believe that if you are in this country illegally and you are a criminal, it is the federal government’s responsibility to make sure that you’re eliminated from the state.
Bottom of Form
Reflecting on previous forum
Q: The recent debate hosted by the Stanislaus County Taxpayer Association and the Maddy Institute got a little spicy. Do you have regrets about anything that was said?
Brandon: I joked that I see why the organizers put me in the middle, because I felt like my two opponents, had they been next to each other, would have entered into a fistfight, attacking each other’s families and attacking about lawsuits and misconduct allegations back and forth. We need to be talking about the issues of this district. If they are so wrapped up in trying to enact the Trump agenda within California and trying to get that endorsement rather than focus on the things actually here, then we’re going to end up just basically electing a personality. The personalities that I’m seeing are two very sensitive people with very large egos with very little to share on what they’re actually going to do to impact people’s lives. I hear a lot of talk about a record of double-digit (bills) getting passed, and that’s nonsense. Last year, one bill was passed by the incumbent. We need somebody that can actually pass a bill. You can’t do that if the moment somebody says something you don’t like, you start attacking their family.
Duarte: In the KCRA interview, Marie did say that she was against deportations and against Donald Trump. I do believe that ongoing sexual harassment lawsuits against an incumbent while at work with a staffer are extraordinarily relevant, especially in today’s environment. This cannot be allowed to go on and should be addressed.
Alvarado-Gil: I don’t have any regrets. I think it’s important that the public get to know the candidates for this race, understand results versus rhetoric, and have the ability to ask questions. It is relevant to talk about false allegations that I was fully exonerated from. As a public official, you are under attack consistently, not only for your physical safety, but for every everything in the public eye. So this is not for the faint of heart. Serving in public is definitely a calling, and you can’t let insults or dirt throwing sway you. Just this week, I had six bills move out of Natural Resources and Water, out of Public Safety, out of Transportation and out of Revenue and Tax. I don’t let all the pitter-patter get in the way of doing the hard work.
Switching political parties
Q: Senator, Democrats elected you to the office you now hold, but now you’re Republican. Why did you switch parties?
Alvarado-Gil: Democrats did not vote me into the seat, it was the constituents of Senate District 4. I did not come in as a party puppet. I came in as a true public servant, and that is still who I am today, taking an independent stance. My party registration is just another example of working for constituents and not for parties.
An uphill climb
Q: Supervisor, although Stanislaus County is the voting heart of this senatorial district, and you’re a native son of the foothills, with all the mountain counties in this district, it’s quite red. How do you expect to win as a Democrat?
Brandon: How anybody wins any campaign – you have a compelling message, you listen to people, you’re respectful, you’re kind, and you tell them, ‘This is exactly what I plan to do to help your life.’ (When Alvarado-Gil) won previously was frankly a fluke, and then a lot of special interest money coming in to buy scary mailers to say, ‘It’s a communist running; you should elect this other person.’ I’m spending the time to actually go to historical societies, chambers and Rotaries, meet with local elected officials. There’s a certain honesty to running as a Democrat in a red district. You know that I am not doing this because it’s easy and I’m a shoo-in and somebody anointed me. I’m doing this because the work is too important to not have somebody who can be effective. And I’m basically running between two people, one who is mini-Donald Trump and somebody else who effectively lied to voters and went from (being) a moderate to a far right conservative. We need somebody that brings people together, and that’s how I’m going to win this. That’s what people are craving, trust and effectiveness.
Campaign scare tactics
Q: Ms. Duarte, last week you seemed fond of making reference to transgender services and communism. It appears that you’re courting only conservative voters. If elected, how can you represent all of your constituents regardless of party affiliation?
Duarte: The transgender (talk) was about priorities in Sacramento. If you get a new job, according to what Marie has voted for in Sacramento, your preexisting condition of diabetes is not covered by insurance, but she mandated that you can get a sex change on your company insurance. This is what’s wrong with Sacramento. I am courting everybody that has increased cost of living and less safety in their community because of the policies that have been coming out of a one-party state for way too long.
Alvarado-Gil: This candidate has not read a bill in her whole life, never seen her in Sacramento, never seen a letter of support or any opportunities to really engage in public service. To say that I have the ability to mandate something to corporate entities is just silly.
Brandon: I just wanted to point out how insane it is that with the budget and Prop. 98 and Medi-Cal and real issues affecting the state, (Duarte) keeps pointing back to this red herring that obviously is coming from a candidate that has no experience in government, passing legislation or being an effective advocate. This same tired rhetoric riles up the base to get people afraid and mad enough to show up to vote and doesn’t actually fix anything. It’s the exact opposite of what we need. I don’t want nepotism candidates that are rich trying to beat up on minorities so that they’re able to take office and seize power.
Duarte: Marie was referring to Assembly Bill 571, the gender-affirming health care that you had your name on. There’s also AB 1487. I’m running because we need to get back to making life affordable so that we don’t lose our next generation to other states.
Don’t forget Stanislaus County
Q: This Senate district spans 13 counties and 21 cities. Why should Stanislaus voters feel confident that you are the person to address their needs?
Brandon: There’s a saying that when Sacramento sneezes, the valley gets a cold and the mountains get pneumonia. I come from truly small town California, more so than anybody on this panel. When anything is passed in Sacramento that doesn’t have adequate reimbursement, that is not having rural voices at the table because they’re crazy and not taken seriously. And we are the ones most affected, because we often have the smallest amount of taxable land, we have the lowest staffing, we have the least amount in reserves. I’ve made it work on a much tighter shoestring. Stanislaus County is still a relatively rural region. Though some things may not be as catastrophic as they are to the mountains, they certainly create a lot of inefficiency and waste dollars that could be going to things that actually help people.
Duarte: Stanislaus County is an absolute powerhouse, and I’m going to have fun representing all of the mountain (counties), we have the most amazing natural resources that really affect the entire economy of California. We’re incredibly important with our forestry and water. I have the endorsements of (congressional representatives) and I’m going to work with them. I have the endorsement of the (Republican minority) leader of the Assembly, Heath Flora. I have the endorsements of my supervisors and the police and the sheriffs and local mayors. We can be a powerful voice for all of California, and we will certainly look after the longest, tallest watershed in the world. It is a powerful district.
Alvarado-Gil: Voters know from Day 1 I have represented Stanislaus County through and through. California has a fiscal crisis problem. Affordability, whether you’re in Stanislaus County or the mountains, is significant. So when we’re looking at the 2026 budget, we have to make sure we are allotting money for the Central Valley.
‘No new taxes’ – except this one?
Q: On the same June 2 ballot as this race, your constituents in Salida and Del Rio will vote on Measure J, a special tax for fire protection. What’s your position on this tax measure?
Duarte: That one is going to be up to the voters locally to decide what they choose to do.
Alvarado-Gil: A part of our democracy allows for our local governments to make decisions. I do not support new taxes. Ultimately, we have a bigger problem. Law enforcement and first responders do not have dedicated funding in California, and that’s what I’ve been fighting for.
Brandon: It will be up to local voters. The key is why our local governments are having to generate revenue for such basic things. It boils back to we have a lot of bureaucracy in Sacramento. I believe that the smallest government is the best government, and the smallest is the one closest to the people. I’d like to see more block grants and more flexible funds from Sacramento to local governments, making sure that they’re able to invest in fire protection using funds that are much more progressive than the regressive ones at local levels.
Forest biofuel and renewable energy
Q: How would you prioritize renewable energy?
Alvarado-Gil: I’ll continue to work with utilities to ensure that we bring affordability to the Central Valley. We’ve been losing so many companies because of mandates and regulations that have pushed businesses out. We are very fortunate that we have a very rich workforce and we have an appetite for development and growth. We’re also looking at ensuring that we have enough renewable energy to meet the needs of artificial intelligence data centers. But frankly when you think about bread and butter issues, our constituents are struggling with affordability, and sometimes we’re seeing increases of anywhere from 200% to 300% on utility bills. I’m going to continue to represent our constituents and bring those discussions to the table with our utility companies.
Duarte: Marie, you know that’s a lie. You have voted for increased taxes. You voted for AB 1228, an increase in minimum wage. Our district does need all forms of energy. I support drilling American oil, I support natural gas, I support hydroelectric plants, which we have a lot of in this district. And I think there’s a potential for biomass fuels in this district too, with all of our forestry.
Brandon: Candidates saying if we drill more oil in California, that is going to reduce energy prices, fundamentally do not understand how energy works. Renewable energy is inexpensive in the state. We have a huge opportunity with the green economy to create jobs locally. It’s making sure that local governments are ready, we are planning for this and seeking that investment. I support all the above energy solutions. I’m relatively moderate on this. I see the economic side of it. We also have to invest in our grid, which cannot handle many of the mandates that are coming down. We have to do better in supporting affordable housing. We also have to hold utility companies accountable. The rates have gone up 100% over the last decade. And we have to reform our health care system. It is not just mandates driving costs. It is greedy systems which are inefficient, bureaucratic and some of the worst in the world.
Alvarado-Gil: I’m going to be called a liar. I’m going to be called all sorts of names. That’s a tactic here. The fact is I know the difference between a tax and a wage increase. And so again, read the bills, see the language, educate yourself before coming up to the big people’s table.
Can a fringe politician get anything done?
Q: Democrats hold a super majority in Sacramento. Ms. Duarte, you seem to have no use for their policies. How can you get anything done if you have no friends across the aisle?
Duarte: California understands that the current state of affairs has failed them. A single-party rule has not worked for California. We are losing people in droves because of the loss of parents’ rights in education and because of the cost of living. We know Sacramento has failed us. These issues are not partisan. They affect everybody. I really look forward to working with especially the inner city Democrats where the cost of food, energy and housing is coming down particularly hard on their backs, the working people.
Standing against party leadership
Q: Gov. Newsom recently threatened to sue three cities in this district: Turlock, Oakdale and Patterson. How would you defend them if it means going up against the leadership of your own party?
Brandon: I’m an unabashed housing advocate. The state should set ambitious goals. But there are fundamental underlying problems that relate to other California policies. I asked this of Attorney General Bonta years before anybody here was involved in politics: You have this strike force coming in to hold bad actors accountable and that is important. We have examples of cities that are trying to build housing and trying to grow. They are not bad actors but are struggling because they don’t have utilities with adequate capacity. They’re struggling with long environmental permits and infrastructure, hookups to PG&E. I advocate working with those local jurisdictions and (Housing and Community Development) and whoever the new governor is to make sure they are able to get the resources they need and plan housing on a longer term basis and build those units. I have not been a fan of Governor Newsom’s housing policy because it is extremely punitive and top-down, and that needs to change,
Water – always a sensitive issue
Q: Ms. Alvarado Gil, state ethics enforcers are looking into whether a Modesto Irrigation District Board director improperly voted on an investigation into his own use of farm water, at least partly because of your urging. Why did you get involved?
Alvarado-Gil: I’m an advocate for exposing fraud, waste and abuse of power. I came in as a regular person running for office and I have been astonished by what I’ve seen. (Larry) Byrd is under investigation by the FPPC because of the actions of Ms. Duarte. She’s looking to subsidize water for just a few farmers. I met with those farmers, they’ve told me the truth so I’m looking at further getting the state involved because the Duarte family has polluted our water. Look it up – over $7 million in fines. You have cancer, it’s people like the Duartes that are polluting our water with pesticides and sick things that cause illness in our children. I went through cancer twice, I know what I’m talking about. She’s making accusations but the reality is (she) comes from a family that is killing people.
Duarte: Politicians like Marie are stealing our water. She supported and funded the State Water Board, which is why we have a water problem and a shortage in California. Because of Marie we are flushing water out to the ocean.
Alvarado-Gil: She has no idea how government works. I don’t have the power to give money to the water board or to appoint them. That’s the governor’s responsibility and the supermajority in the Democratic Party. It just goes to the silliness of not having experience.
Brandon: I actually agree with Marie in this case. This is a pattern of behavior; Duarte and her husband, through their businesses, have been sued for unpaid wages by workers, effectively destroying wetlands, clean water violations. During COVID you took $6.2 million in federal help for workplace wage replacement and profited $800,000 in salary that year. That’s a character flaw we can’t overlook.
Duarte: Marie did fund the State Water Board. She voted for Newsom’s budget three times, and the Farm Bureau has had our back in absolutely everything. I’m proud to have done what we’ve done for farming.
Trump v. Newsom
Q: Who’s a more effective leader, Gavin Newsom or Donald Trump?
Duarte: Donald Trump, our president of the United States of America.
(His) policies, closing the borders, the energy policies, fighting fraud and abuse of systems. Definitely, I would like to be able to bring (his) policies to Sacramento.
Brandon: I have many disagreements with the governor, but it is complicated running an entire state. There are things I like and things that I think are horrible, but he hasn’t started a war in the Middle East. He hasn’t increased the military budget $500 billion while taking food away from starving kids and Medi-Cal. He hasn’t managed to cut government and simultaneously increase the spending $4.5 trillion over a decade, which is money that I and my grandkids are going to have to pay. He hasn’t embarrassed us on the world stage like Trump. He hasn’t lied to voters, he hasn’t added the largest tax increase on working class people through his tariff policies that (were) patently illegal. I am not pro-Trump and there are a lot of conservatives and Republicans realizing that Donald Trump is not pro-them.
Alvarado-Gil: I support our president. He got both the popular vote and electoral vote. I want to see America succeed, which means I want to see him succeed, and that’s one of the reasons that I was invited to his inauguration, which I did attend respectfully. I don’t agree with Gov. Newsom’s fight to Trump-proof California. It’s a waste of taxpayer dollars. It creates a cloud where we should be talking about the issues and affordability and helping Californians keep their businesses open. You know, this pre-presidential fight between our governor and our president is real childish. I know that our president has a plan, and I don’t see a plan coming from Newsom.
Food insecurity in the Valley
Q: What can be done in Sacramento about food insecurity in our region?
Brandon: We talked about President Trump cutting SNAP benefits, one of the most effective programs out there. We should be adding into programs that support local food banks. Another part of President Trump’s budget is eliminating money that supports these food bank operations, including in my home county, Tuolumne. We should be offering people affordable, nutritious food that is grown locally. It’s good for farmers, it is good for business, it is good for people. That includes things like healthy, free school lunches. Kids should not be going into debt because they can’t afford that lunch bill. We should be adding supplemental EBT credits to buy local produce, and supporting small farmers and not just the export industry. It’s embarrassing to be one of the best food producing areas in the entire world and yet have hungry people.
Duarte: The state of California has a $4.2 trillion GDP. Our budget is close to $500 billion. It is because of Marie and Newsom that we don’t have the funds. We have a mismanagement problem of our funds in Sacramento. We have waste, fraud and abuse. We have plenty of income to pay for all the programs that we need for all the people to have food.
Alvarado-Gil: The obsession with me is palpable. But this is about food insecurity, a very real issue that our families are battling, and we have the richest agriculture economy. Just this week there was a bill to create an agency to coordinate food insecurity. We don’t need more agencies. We don’t need more government, more programs. We need to make sure healthy food goes from farm to table to our children and families, and so I do support programs like WIC and CalFresh and food stamps, but if you are able to work, you should work or volunteer. Get involved in your community. It’s healthy for yourself and your community.
Brandon: Neither of you said anything to actually help feed hungry people. You didn’t talk about any program that you would change and you talked in general rhetoric about a bunch of partisan things. You support a program that already exists and a president trying to eliminate it. It’s a bunch of gobbledygook, it’s an absolutely nothing burger, and people are tired of that.
Alvarado-Gil: I did mention CalFresh and SNAP. I’m surprised that Supervisor Brandon doesn’t know that those are state programs that feed the needy. And I also mentioned WIC. These are all programs that give our children a foundation so they can perform in school and be healthy individuals.
Duarte: I very clearly blamed the Democrat Party and Newsom’s budget that Marie voted for for not having the funds available to feed the people of California.
Closing statements
Alvarado-Gil: The opportunity to answer questions and talk about policy are the most coveted aspects of democracy. The mud slinging and the insults we can do without. Our endorsements are strong, we’ve got people on the ground, and our policies are solid. I’ve been doing this work. I have the full support of the state Senate, of my colleagues even across the aisle. I’ve got bills right now that are bipartisan-support bills, and I will continue to serve as the vice chair of Agriculture and the vice chair of Revenue and Tax. I serve on the Government Organizations Committee, the committee of the wine industry and our fairs and farm allocations. I look forward to continuing to serve our constituents in the Central Valley and Sierras.
Brandon: It is a difficult time to be in a public leadership role. We have hyperpartisan times where a lot boils down to nonsense answers that aren’t really addressing everything. It’s finger pointing. But it should be about how are we actually helping district people? On issues that are most important, can we even trust our leaders? Do they even understand the way that we experience the world? There is a chronic lack of faith in our future, because people my age are not having kids, home ownership is being delayed. There’s also a lack of faith in our political system. Two stereotypes I want to highlight that are potentially the most toxic. One is somebody who is a politician that flip-flops, their word means nothing. They will moderate themselves to any audience and stab you in the back. The other is somebody who is a nepotism candidate that has the right last name, who’s a multimillionaire and buys their way to the top. I am a regular person who stepped up to do work in my own backyard, and that’s what I’m going to take to Sacramento, fighting for you.
Duarte: I have lived and raised my children in this community, and I will fight so that parents have rights in our education, so that we can keep growing food in this most amazing state of ours, so that the rural communities, the working families, the resource industries of this district can succeed. I will not be voting for (a) nuisance budget, tampons in boys bathrooms or taking away parents’ rights in schools. I will be there for District 4. I will crack down on crime. I will fight for more affordable living, and I will cut taxes. We need a community that we can be proud of and that our children will stay in. So let’s make California great again.
Q: We appreciate your willingness to answer our questions and to serve our public. Viewers, please see our other debates at our website, themodestofocus.org, and don’t forget to vote.
