Eye on Sacramento -- Former state Assembly member Elaine Alquist jockeys for Democratic nomination Eye on Sacramento -- Former state Assembly member Elaine Alquist jockeys for Democratic nomination (February 20, 2004)

By Grace Rauh

Only two weeks after moving to Cupertino in 1979, Elaine Alquist stood before the local school board lobbying to keep her son's new elementary school open.

Two years later, she became the school's PTA president and in 1983 she joined the board.

And the school "still exists. It's still there," Alquist said.

Alquist, a St. Louis native whose parents immigrated from Greece, is hoping to return to Sacramento to continue advocating for schools and health care and to ensure that Californian's tax dollars are spent wisely, she said.

Alquist spent six years representing Mountain View and the rest of the 22nd Assembly District before being termed out in 2002. She has spent the past 14 months campaigning and teaching an education class at Santa Clara University for teachers studying school administration.

"I want to continue my advocacy for Mountain View," she said.

The seasoned politician is soft-spoken and wears a heart-shaped American flag pin that says "Bless the US," but a quiet fire grows in her eyes when she discusses the state of affairs in Sacramento and her main opponent, Manny Diaz.

"I would not have voted for this past year's budget," she said, noting that Diaz voted in favor of the fiscal plan. To balance the budget on the backs of the state's most vulnerable people, the young and old, is "unconscionable," she said.

If elected, Alquist says she will create a committee to look at funding for K-12 education. She wants to overhaul education budgeting so that each California child receives the same amount of money for school. And she is calling for more credentialed teachers in all schools because there is a correlation between non-credentialed faculty and low test scores, Alquist said.

"I don't think you can bandage it any more."

The former Assembly member is also eager to tackle health care issues, skyrocketing workers' compensation rates and insurance all together because they are all connected, she said.

Alquist grudgingly supports the governor's $15 billion bond measure because "we have no choice," she said. If the bond doesn't pass, Alquist supports a temporary tax increase on the state's top income earners to raise $4 billion over three to four years. And she would back the reinstatement of the Vehicle License Fee.

"We need to educate the community and say 'Do you want all these decreased services to local government that affect you, or do you want $136 (the average VLF fee) in your pocket?'" she said.

When the state Assembly was debating whether or not to cut the car tax years ago, Alquist said she suggested including a trigger on the fee so that in hard economic times, the revenues would return to local governments.

"Just to make sure local governments would always have that income," she said.

Women's issues -- health and safety specifically -- also figure prominently in Alquist's platform. She proudly points to "Maricela's Law," a bill she authored that makes it easier for children who were victims of sexual assault to bring charges against their abusers. Before it became law, Alquist had to convince the all-male state Senate Public Safety Committee to approve her legislation.

"I think a good legislator really educates people," she said.

Alquist also considers herself a champion of senior issues. Alquist, 59, is married to former state Senator Al Alquist, who is 95 years old. It is her second marriage.

Alquist grew up in a working-class neighborhood just a few blocks outside the St. Louis, Mo. city limits. Her father owned a few bar and grills, and at one point ran a cocktail lounge where rock and blues music legend Tina Turner appeared in the early 1960s, according to Alquist. She was disappointed to have missed the music diva's performance, but she says rhythm and blues music is still her favorite today.

Departing state Sen. John Vasconcellos has endorsed Alquist, as has Mountain View Mayor Matt Pear. Vasconcellos "knows both of us well, and he knows our work and he has given me the sole endorsement," Alquist said.

E-mail Grace Rauh at grauh@mv-voice.com

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