The fight for Temecula has reached City Hall.
Besides battling over the school board, conservatives and a political action committee opposed to how they govern are sparring in races for Temecula City Council seats on the Nov. 5 general election ballot.
One Temecula Valley PAC, which describes itself as opposed to political extremism in local government, is supporting Eric Faulkner in his bid to unseat conservative firebrand Jessica Alexander in District 2.
The PAC also is backing Sue Evans, who is running against Mayor James “Stew” Stewart in District 4. There’s no PAC endorsement in the race between Matt Rahn and George Rapciewicz for a vacant District 1 council seat.
The races for three of the council’s five nonpartisan seats will not only determine who oversees Temecula city government, but whether conservatives or the PAC have the upper hand in a showdown that also involves the Temecula Valley Unified School District.
Alexander’s “poor performance” and the rise of conservative school board majority were the impetus for forming the PAC, “so we are heavily invested in ensuring great candidates are seated on our City Council,” co-founder Jeff Pack said via email.
A city of more than 110,000 near Riverside County’s border with San Diego County, Temecula has long been politically conservative. While a plurality of Riverside County’s voters are registered Democrats, 39% of Temecula voters are registered Republicans compared to 31% for the Democratic Party.
For years, Temecula’s council and school board largely avoided issues like abortion or LGBTQ rights. Then Alexander won a council seat in 2020 and two years later, candidates backed by the Christian conservative Inland Empire Family Political Action Committee won three of five school board seats.
Among other things, the school board majority banned the teaching of so-called critical race theory and enacted a policy requiring school officials to tell parents if their child identifies as transgender. The majority ended after Danny Gonzalez resigned in late 2023 and One Temecula Valley PAC led a successful recall of Joseph Komrosky in June.
Temecula City Council Member Jessica Alexander speaks during the Temecula City Council meeting in Temecula on Tuesday, Sept. 26, 2023. (File photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)
Alexander made national news and was ridiculed by late-night TV host Stephen Colbert when, in April 2021, she compared her refusal to wear a mask to prevent the spread of COVID-19 to Rosa Parks defying racial segregation by refusing to give up her bus seat.
Alexander also sought to make Temecula a “sanctuary for the unborn,” walked off the council dais during the reading of a Pride Month declaration and tried to pass a policy that might have banned LGBTQ pride flags from being flown on city property.
On her campaign website, Alexander, who did not respond to requests for comment, said she stands for “ensuring that Temecula stays pro-family friendly” along with “keeping neighborhoods safe,” supporting economic development and “promoting safe and well-balanced infrastructure.”
A post on Alexander’s Instagram account shows her appearing with Rapciewicz, who declined to comment, Komrosky, who is running to regain his seat, and school board candidate Jon Cobb. The post labeled “Veterans for Temecula” lists the candidates’ priorities, including “upholding traditional moral values” and “safeguarding parental rights.”
Another post shows Alexander, Cobb and Komrosky thanking volunteers as they stand in front of 412 Church Temecula Valley. The church’s pastor, Tim Thompson, is the public face of Inland Empire Family PAC.
Faulkner, who sits on Temecula’s Race, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Commission, said via email his decision to run for the council’s District 2 seat “is driven by a desire to continue building on the strengths of Temecula — ensuring it remains a safe, welcoming, and prosperous place for all residents.”
Eric Faulkner is running for the District 2 seat on the Temecula City Council in the Nov. 5, 2024 election. (Photo courtesy of Eric Faulkner)
While stressing his campaign “isn’t centered around defeating any one individual,” Faulkner said: “I believe there are areas where her (Alexander’s) approach may not fully align with the broader needs of District 2.
“She has made decisions that prioritize political ideology over pragmatic solutions which hinder progress,” he added. “Temecula deserves leaders who put the community’s practical needs first.”
In the District 4 race, One Temecula Valley PAC is working “to show Evans to be a very serious candidate with a great vision for the future of this city,” Pack said.
“We need council members that will do more than glad hand and wave at parades,” he said. “Evans is that candidate that can get funding from Sacramento to ensure our infrastructure is maintained and we continue to grow Temecula’s strength in the region.”
Stewart, Evans’ opponent, said he’s delivered tens of millions of dollars for Temecula, including money to build the latest phase of the French Valley Parkway project.
“The fact that (Pack) is saying I’m just a parade waver — yeah, I do that too,” Stewart said.
“My job is to represent the city of Temecula to the citizens of Temecula. I’m a multi-faceted candidate who takes his job seriously … I do a lot for the city of Temecula that a lot of people don’t know about.”
Temecula Mayor James “Stew” Stewart speaks during the Temecula City Council meeting in Temecula on Tuesday, Sept. 26, 2023. (File photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)
Stewart, who said he’s “not campaigning with anyone” in his reelection bid, said One Temecula Valley PAC opposes him because: “I’m a 100% nonpartisan politician (and) they don’t like that.”
“They want someone that will support (them) and I don’t support them and I don’t support the other side,” he said. “I support the city of Temecula and what’s best for the city of Temecula. I don’t want a party to determine what’s best for the city of Temecula.”
On her campaign website, Evans describes herself as the chief operating officer of a nonprofit with 37 years’ experience in the child welfare field. “I have the skills to negotiate and navigate challenging situations, always working in the best interests of the diverse community we serve,” she said via email.
Sue Evans is running for the District 4 seat on the Temecula City Council in the Nov. 5, 2024 election. (Courtesy of One Temecula Valley PAC)
Evans added: “The City Council has no purview in national (and) social issues and needs to return to local concerns. (One Temecula Valley PAC has) provided significant support by gathering many of our community members to support me and campaign to bring a positive change to our community.”
On his website, Rapciewicz, a Marine Corps veteran like Alexander and Cobb, said he’s a “program management specialist with experience overseeing multi-billion dollar projects.”
His stated goals include promoting government transparency, maintaining and improving local roads, keeping taxes low and giving police and firefighters what they need to protect the public.
Rahn served on the council before giving up his seat to run unsuccessfully as a Republican for state Assembly in 2022. “(I) had a wonderful opportunity for eight years to represent that city and do a lot of incredible things,” Rahn said.
“When the (council) seat became vacant, I realized that the (council spent a lot of) time addressing … political arguments that aren’t necessarily part of the city’s jurisdiction or purview. And so it would be great to bring balance back to the city and really focus on the things that matter, like public safety and infrastructure.”
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If voters send him back to the council, Rahn said he’d focus on boosting Temecula’s public safety ranking, which he said has slipped in recent years. Infrastructure, supporting local businesses and preparing Temecula for possibly hosting events in the 2028 Olympics are among his other priorities.
One Temecula Valley PAC isn’t backing a candidate in District 1, although Pack said his group sees Rapciewicz as “too extreme and radical” for the council.
