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Did Mayor Abram Wilson vote against the temporary police station next door to the Canyon Park neighborhood for political reasons? He is running for State Assembly again and approving the controversial location could cost him votes.

When asked this question in an interview with the San Ramon Express on March 24, Wilson answered emphatically, "When I disagree with something, I'm vocal about it."

"I don't think that we're at the end of the economic downturn," Wilson explained.

That's why he opposed spending almost $9 million dollars on buying and remodeling the building at 2401 Crow Canyon Road. It's all the way over on the West side of the city. There are buildings available for lease on the other side of the parking lot from City Hall, which Wilson feels are more suitable until the City Center can be built.

He said the City Council doesn't always agree on everything, but "We can disagree without being disagreeable."

But how would he handle the divisive partisanship in Sacramento? "I try to find out what will bring people together. I've a record of doing that." Wilson said.

Wilson is endorsed by State Sen. Abel Maldonado who crossed party lines to help pass the state budget last year, but his appointment to fill the Lieutenant Governor's post was defeated in part because Assemblywoman Joan Buchanan voted against it.

Wilson feels that Buchanan has not done a good job and says voters know it. He wants everyone to compare his record as Mayor of San Ramon against Buchanan's in the Assembly. He accuses her of not caring about the District.

"When someone spends $1.3 million to get out of a job they've been in a few months, I'd say she doesn't want to do it," Wilson said, referring to Buchanan's run for Ellen Tauscher's 10th Congressional District seat last year.

Wilson believes that Buchanan wasn't challenged in the Democratic Primary because her opponents knew that even if they won against her, they couldn't win against him.

When asked about Buchanan's potential for spending a lot on the campaign he replied, "I was outspent three to four to one (in the 2008 Republican primary) and won."

His three former opponents, Richard Rao, Scott Kamena, and Judy Lloyd, are all supporting his candidacy this year, and Lloyd is his campaign manager.

Wilson is confident he can win in the 15th Assembly District. "We're all in this together," Wilson said about voters, whether they are Democrats, Republicans, or Decline to State.

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