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Politics

Hot Races Satisfy My Passion

By Gloria Penner / Senior Political Correspondent,  Political Fix by Gloria Penner
Published May 28, 2008 at 9:08 PM PDT
This story was published more than 16 years ago.

I grew up in a Brooklyn apartment with a gaggle of relatives, all of whom were passionate about professional baseball and politics. We were uncompromising and vigorous about which team we loved and which political party and candidate deserved our support. And the best part was that we never did reach compromise and we expressed our disagreements loudly and often dramatically with waving arms and stomping feet. The teams about which we struggled were the Brooklyn Dodgers ("dem bums"), the ("high-falutin'") New York Yankees, and the cruel, cold New York Giants. There were even more political parties than local ball clubs in contention including, but not limited to, the Republicans, Democrats, the Socialist Workers Party , The Farm Labor Party , and the Communists . It was indeed a time of political tempestuousness married to baseball frenzy.

Now here we are decades later and 3000 miles away, and once again, I'm feeling an echo of that former time. True, the Padres are not inspiring anything resembling baseball passion these days. But, oh, our candidates - and I'm talking local. The Clinton-Obama dust-up becomes remote when you think about whether the mayor or the president will have a greater effect on your life. After all, the president can't influence whether the pothole in front of your property will be repaired.

So, congratulations to San Diego's candidates who are engaged in closely-contested races, close enough to get our voter-blood flowing a bit faster these days. At the risk of treading on a few campaign workers and supporter sensitivities, here are some really competitive contests :

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  • Mayor Jerry Sanders and Steve Francis for San Diego mayor
  • City Attorney Mike Aguirre and City Council President Scott Peters for city attorney
  • Sherri Lightner and Marshall Merrifield in District 1 (Phil Thalheimer has gone extreme with the number and tenor of his direct mail pieces)
  • Stephen Whitburn (endorsed by Congressmember Bob Filner) and Todd Gloria (endorsed by Congressmember Susan Davis) in District 3
  • April Boling and Marti Emerald in District 7

There are endorsements, news reports, blogs, and, best of all, kitchen-table and water-cooler conversations about these candidates, and some of those arguments are really loud and dramatic. Reminds me of my childhood.

Politics
Gloria Penner
KPBS remembers Gloria Penner, Senior Political Correspondent and host of "KPBS Midday Edition- Roundtable" on Fridays at noon. Gloria was the host "San Diego Week" from 2008-2011 and also hosted the first hour of KPBS Radio's "These Days" from 1995 to 1999. She served as the host of KPBS TV's "Full Focus" from 2003 to 2007. Gloria first joined KPBS Television in 1969 as director of community relations. Subsequently, she oversaw production of television programs for nine years. From 1993 to 1995, she was the host and writer for "KPBS Weekend Edition," a locally produced television program featuring highlights from the MacNeil/Lehrer News Hour. National credits include reporting and producing assignments for "Nightly Business Report" and the "MacNeil/Lehrer News Hour." She played an active part in KPBS’ election coverage for 30 years. She has moderated scores of town hall meetings on candidates races and propositions for KPBS, "Envision San Diego," and the League of Women Voters. She conducted scores of interviews with congressional, state and local candidates; and reported for television documentaries on issues and candidates. Her awards include 7 Emmys, 5 Golden Mikes, 2 Gracies from the American Federation of Women in Radio and Television, The San Diego Press Club’s Harold Keen Award for excellence in journalism, the John Swett Award from the California Teachers Association, and many honors from the Society for Professional Journalists and the San Diego Bar Association. An annual Gloria Penner Award for Civic Service was established in 2003 by the League of Women Voters of San Diego County, and Gloria was the first recipient. Gloria earned her bachelor’s degree from Brooklyn College. She did graduate work in English at New York University and earned her Master’s Degree in English from Syracuse University. She started her radio career in San Francisco in the 1950s as an associate producer on a program called Housewives Protective League. Her first job in television came after a move to Washington, D.C. where she was associate producer of the Washington segment of the "Today Show." After a stint in Hawaii and a return to Washington, D.C., she relocated to San Diego and took a few years off for family life. Gloria is survived by her husband Bill Snyder of La Jolla; two sons, Brad Penner of San Diego and Steve Penner of Tucson, Arizona.
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