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VALLEJO – Two candidates are running to represent District 6 on the Vallejo City Council: incumbent Councilmember Cristina Arriola is challenged by Vallejo Housing Authority tenant commissioner Helen-Marie “Cookie” Gordon.

District 6 represents South Vallejo. The candidate with the most votes will win the election, regardless of whether they have a majority. Ballots were mailed to all voters this week and must be postmarked by Nov. 5. Or voters can vote in person on Nov. 5, Election Day.

How we reported this story: We solicited questions from our audience and attended community forums to find out what questions mattered most to Vallejo voters. We then interviewed each of the candidates to learn more about their positions and what they plan to do in office. You can find out more about how we cover elections on our FAQ. 

Cristina Arriola

Councilmember Cristina Arriola is the incumbent candidate for District 6. She is the council liaison for the Surveillance Advisory Board and the Marina Advisory Committee. Arriola said she wants to continue speaking out for her district, which she feels is often neglected when it comes to citywide projects. 

Arriola said that she does not hesitate to vote against the majority if she feels that a proposal is not in line with the needs of her constituents. Arriola noted that she opposed the city’s purchase of a residence to expand the security perimeter of the Flemming hill water plant, the city’s eighth cent sales tax, Measure P, and she voted against the Broadway supportive housing project over funding concerns.

To address Vallejo’s staffing emergency at the Police Department, Arriola has been calling for an increase in the presence of California Highway Patrol officers on the section of Highway 29 that runs through her district and serves as one of Vallejo’s main thoroughfares, Sonoma Boulevard. 

“They have already made a presence and already made a difference,” Arriola said in a community forum. “They have gotten guns off of cars and pull people over. I know I sound like a broken record but it's been working.”

Proposed assistance from the Solano County Sheriff’s Office has also been working its way through bureaucratic hurdles but according to Arriola, the sheriff’s office is asking the city of Vallejo to pay $8 million for six officers.

“That's not the best use of our money at all,” she said in a forum. “It's a rip off, and they know it. The sheriff's department knows how desperate we are. I say don't pay them. Let's just focus on getting the CHP.”

To address homelessness, Arriola has often suggested using a large empty lot that was once a Kmart location near the corner of Redwood Street and Sonoma Boulevard to establish a safe camping area for the city’s homeless residents. The location is privately owned but she advocated for a lease agreement or even using eminent domain to purchase the property. 

Arriola also said that she thinks the city needs to find ways to support the school district to improve the quality of education in Vallejo schools so companies would feel good about bringing employees and their families to Vallejo.

She said she would encourage city staff to be more proactive about attracting development interest. “You have to go out and do that outreach and seek funding, and seek developers to come,” she said.

Arriola said that in the past four years she has honed her skill in areas like union negotiations, the Brown Act – California’s open meeting law – and the procedures of city governance. She said that a lot of the issues that the current council has been laboring on are about to come together. 

For example, she said the ongoing police reform issues with the state Department of Justice are positioned to move forward. “Once we get a new chief that's ready to come in here and roll their sleeves up, I think that 2025 could be a great year for change,” she said.

• Fundraising: As of late September, Arriola’s campaign had raised $6,355. She received one contribution of $1,000 or more, from Joseph Estrada.
• Endorsements: Arriola is endorsed by SEIU Local 1021, the Sierra Club, the Solano County Democratic Party, Benicia Mayor Steve Young and Vallejo Mayor Robert McConnell.

Helen-Marie “Cookie” Gordon

Helen-Marie “Cookie” Gordon is the tenant commissioner of the Vallejo Housing Authority and serves as a citizen representative on two advisory committees for the Solano Transportation Authority. She said she wants to use her personal life experience and the community network she has built as an advocate for safe and accessible streets to lift-up all of District 6.

Gordon said that when she came to Vallejo in 2005, she was homeless with her four children. She had lost her home in the Sacramento area because she was not able to keep up with rising housing prices.

Gordon said that she struggled to find services that she and her family qualified for. She did get some temporary housing support because of her husband’s military service, but he had gone to the eastern U.S. to receive treatment for post traumatic stress disorder through the Veterans Administration, she said.

At that time, Gordon was also undergoing cancer treatment. She said the confidence of her son, Christopher Gordon, who has down syndrome, helped her keep going through such a difficult time. “He was a big inspiration, he knew I was going to take good care of him,” Gordon said.

The Christian Help Center, now known as Solano Dream Center, helped Gordon and her family find housing. Gordon said that she was grateful that Pastor Ray Bernardis recognized that she was facing difficult circumstances and never made her feel ashamed that she needed help.

After Gordon found stable housing in South Vallejo, she started getting involved in the school district to advocate for her children's education and she advocated for safe and accessible streets in her neighborhood. 

Gordon said that Christopher, who was using a wheelchair at the time, had to use the edge of the road to travel down Magazine Street because there were no wheelchair cuts in the sidewalk. He was on his way to church for a performance when a reckless driver ran him off the road and he had to be rushed to the hospital. 

Gordon’s son Charles was also badly injured near the intersection of Sonoma Boulevard and Magazine Street when a car hit him as he was walking to catch the bus for school. 

The two incidents fueled Gordon’s push for safer streets throughout the neighborhood. City officials immediately installed wheelchair cuts in the curbs along Magazine Street but Gordon kept going. Since then, she has been an advocate for traffic calming measures, safe routes to schools and adequate sidewalks in South Vallejo.

Gordon is also involved in a project to build a cooperative grocery store in South Vallejo that is modeled on Oakland’s Mandela Grocery Cooperative. 

“Why can't we have a healthy grocery store? Why do we have to pack up our children like we're going on a trip just to go shopping?” Gordon said.

In a community forum, Gordon said that she would advocate for more officer training designed to reduce racial bias and foster reconciliation. But she said that the work needs to start with the city manager, the police chief and the police union. 

Gordon said that she has faced discrimination from officers but she said officers have helped her in the past and in one instance she feels they saved her life. “We have good officers out there, and we want to find ways to better support them,” Gordon said. 

Gordon said she believes that many people in District 6 want the same thing. “They want to feel safe,” she said. “They want to enjoy walking to the park or walking their pets or to be able to have a good time with their children at the park and to see quality, beauty like someone really put pride into their community.” 

• Fundraising: Gordon’s campaign did not report any monetary contributions as of late September.
• Endorsements: Gordon is endorsed by the Black Woman Organized for Political Action Solano Napa Chapter , the former Vallejo Mayor Osby Davis and Solano County Supervisor Erin Hannigan.