Campaign 2012: New Senate District 17 - KCOY Santa Maria, Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo - News

Campaign 2012: New Senate District 17

The new Senate seat will link San Luis Obispo to the Central Coast.

It includes all of San Luis Obispo and Santa Cruz counties, just over 45% of Monterey County and over 11% of Santa Clara County.  

Here's how it got that way.  Re-districting happens every 10 years, but this time for the first time, it was done by an independent citizen commission made up of five republicans, five democrats, and four independents.

Districts were decided not by a balance of party affiliation but by things like population and communities of interest.

That's could be a good or bad thing depending on where you're running and which party your running with.

"In our central coast district, I'm a beneficiary in terms of voter registration plays out but that's not true in other parts of the state so it's kind of a wash," said Monning.  

Current Assemblyman Bill Monning now has nearly a 20 point spread in party affilation compared to his republican runningmate Larry Beaman, but Beaman said he's up for the challenge.

"It comes down to listening and that's what I've been doing quite a bit of...It's not going to be an extreme liberal or extreme conservative. It will be someone more that is capable of seeing both sides," said Beaman.

Drive time for whoever wins will be close to four hours from top to bottom of the district, but both candidates running said there are things that will unify this district.

"Agriculture, hospitality, tourism some of the biggest employers, higher education is strong in this region," said Monning.

Both candidates say covering a lot ground isn't a problem, "But it's a beautiful district and that's what minimizes any concerns about that transit time," said Monning.

"By hitting the road, hitting the pavement, knocking on doors and talking with business owners," said Beaman.