This past week, I was talking with a community member who called me the “accidental politician”. His comment was meant as a compliment as I am a first-time candidate, not a career politician looking to make a career out of serving in elected office. I am running for the Folsom City Council because I saw a need for leadership in many areas of our city.
No disrespect is meant to those who are serving in professional, full-time elected office. We need citizens to serve in higher offices in our community. My motivation to run for office is different. 

My journey began when I saw the lack of adequate police department staffing in our city. Until this past summer when the fiscal year 2024-25 budget was passed, there had been no additional line level officers or dispatchers added to the Folsom PD since 2009. During this period, Folsom has grown by almost 20,000 residents. When I started asking council members privately about this lack of police department staffing over 2 years ago, I was given several different answers. It was suggested that I run for city council based on my experience in local government, my ability to solve big problems and my demonstrated ability to collaborate with diverse community members to address community challenges. After talking with my family and trusted friends, some I have known for over 30 years, I decided to run for Folsom City Council District 4. 

As an accidental politician, I have found residents and business owners enthusiastic about my candidacy. They appreciate two things; the fact that I have never run for public office and my honesty. Since I began my quest for City Council, I discovered other funding gaps in different city departments. I have been told my approach of collaboration and working with different stakeholders in the community is appreciated. I am not a community activist who wants to lecture and complain about our city every day. While there are challenges in our community, there are more positive attributes about Folsom that we all love. 

As your Folsom City Council member, I will bring my thirty-three years of experience in local government to the city council. My experience includes over 20 years in leadership and executive positions where I built and managed multi-million-dollar budgets. I managed budgets during the Great Recession and during good economic times. I have made tough decisions that impact communities. 

As a lifelong public servant, I look forward to serving you, the residents and business owners in Folsom, on your city council. 

Jim Ortega, Candidate for Folsom City Council Dist. 4

The above commentary was authored by local resident Jim Ortega and submitted to Folsom Times. The views and opinions expressed in community commentary submissions are that of the authors and do not reflect the views and opinions of Folsom Times, its management, staff, stakeholders or advertisers.

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