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Democracy, the very fiber on which our nation was built, is a fragile experiment, and it requires us all to participate in it to make it flourish and thrive. The upcoming District 4 Santa Cruz County supervisor race also reminds us that public confidence and trust are necessary and important for our democracy to flourish. Each institution has a role in protecting it, and we take that responsibility at Community Bridges seriously.

Following the announcement that Tony Nuñez, our marketing and communications director, would run for supervisor, we worked internally to establish clear guardrails to ensure we continue to honor our longstanding commitment to neutrality among candidates and that no agency assets, materials, time or support are used in ways that could compromise that trust.

We believe it is important to be transparent about this step because public-serving and public-facing organizations must hold themselves to a high standard, especially when an employee seeks elected office. These safeguards are designed not only to protect our organization, but also to protect the integrity of the community’s electoral process and the confidence residents place in community institutions such as Community Bridges.

We admire all candidates willing to serve, including Elias Gonzales and incumbent Supervisor Felipe Hernandez with his decades of public service, and we wish each of them well. Our mission, however, extends beyond any election cycle or political party.  

People who rely on our services need ongoing support, commitment to collaboration, consistency, fairness and stability every day, regardless of any election outcomes. As a non-profit institution, we are legally required to remain separate from all campaign activities related to individual candidates. We will continue to work with all of our elected officials across the political and social spectrum to help ensure that we fulfill our mission and continue working on the shared goals of supporting all residents across the Central Coast.

Raymon Cancino

CEO of Community Bridges