For both candidates in the 37th Assembly District race, the high cost of living is a central issue.
The incumbent, Gregg Hart, and challenger Sari Domingues agree that affordability is a major concern for residents, but they differ on how to address it.
The candidates pointed to housing, groceries, gasoline, and health care as some of the biggest expenses facing Californians.
“My biggest issue is the cost of living,” Domingues said. “People that I know left. My sisters, my son — they left California because it is way too expensive.”
Hart said the state needs to make it easier and faster to build affordable housing.
“We’re trying to streamline the process to make it quicker and easier for developers to build affordable housing,” Hart said. “We’re putting money into that effort as well.”
Domingues said Californians are paying too much in taxes and other costs.
“We’re getting taxed too much, and it’s not just making tax on something, but it’s also doing things that cost us more money as citizens,” Domingues said. “So when we have to pay more money for things, that’s like a tax.”
Hart also said staying connected with constituents is a priority. He pointed to sidewalk office hours in Goleta and similar events throughout the district as a way to hear directly from residents.
“One of the most important things is to be accessible to my constituents,” Hart said. “Today we’re doing sidewalk office hours in Goleta. We do them all over the district and every community because I want to be able to hear directly from my constituents.”
Domingues said concerns about Hart’s record are among the reasons she is running against him for a second time.
“He wants to bring our expenses down and stuff, but he’s been there for years, four years,” Domingues said. “This is why I’m running for the second time because I don’t like a lot of the things he’s voting on.”
The General Election is Nov. 3.
