Tryon declares bid for election

Tom Tryon announced Tuesday he will seek re-election for an eighth term on the Calaveras County Board of Supervisors, setting up a District 4 race against former District 5 Supervisor Russ Thomas.

Tryon, 66, an Angels Camp rancher, is the second-longest serving county supervisor in California and one of only 20 registered Libertarians elected to public office in the state.

“We’re deep into a couple areas I would very much like to see through,” Tryon said at the end of Tuesday’s board meeting.    

He pointed to the general plan, a document that guides long-term land use planning, and is unlikely to come to the board for a vote before the end of this year and the Wagon Trail realignment of Highway 4 between Copperopolis and Angels Camp.    

“I’d like to be involved with the CCOG (Calaveras Council of Governments, a transportation planning agency) process, not only with the alignment but with bringing it ... to what is commonly known as a shovel-ready project,” Tryon said.    

He also said he wants to see the Copperopolis Community Plan finished.    

“That’s been out there lingering for a very long time,” Tryon said and added that “in its draft form, it’s not appropriate to go forward.”   

Tryon also said the performance of county staff factored in his decision.   

“It’s enjoyable to come and visit with department heads,” he said. “In the aggregate, this is the best and most qualified staff in the 27 years I’ve been involved in county government.”    

He concluded his remarks by mentioning that “even though there are differences in opinion, the board is functioning well.”    

Thomas, who announced his candidacy Dec. 30, represented his hometown of Copperopolis and the Rancho Calaveras community for four years before losing his 2010 re-election bid against Darren Spellman.   

Copperopolis, whose precincts favored Thomas by a narrow margin in 2010, shifted from District 5 to District 4 when supervisors agreed to new district boundaries in August, based on the 2010 U.S. Census population figures.    

Thomas, a 67-year-old contractor and former Stanislaus County planning commissioner, declined to comment on Tryon’s entry into the race.