Countywide : Democrats Plan Labor Day Barbecue

Kathleen Brown, Democratic candidate for state treasurer, is scheduled as the keynote speaker for the Ventura County Democrats’ Sixth Annual Labor Day Barbecue at Oxnard College Park on Sept. 3.

The Labor Day barbecue is the traditional campaign kickoff for Democratic candidates in Ventura County. The largest Democratic event in the county, the barbecue is expected to draw about 400 people to meet the lineup of area Democratic candidates for state, local and national office.

Other speakers include state Sen. Gary K. Hart (D-Santa Barbara); Assemblyman Jack O’Connell (D-Carpinteria); Anita Perez Ferguson, who is challenging Rep. Robert J. Lagomarsino (R-Ventura); Richard Frieman, who is challenging Rep. Elton Gallegly (R-Simi Valley), and Ginny Connell, who is challenging Assemblyman Tom McClintock (R-Thousand Oaks).

Kathleen Brown, a lawyer and former member of the Los Angeles Board of Public Works, is trying to unseat state Treasurer Thomas W. Hayes, a Republican. She is the daughter of former Gov. Edmund G. Brown Sr. and sister of former Gov. Jerry Brown.

Monday’s $15 per person barbecue will raise money to establish a Democratic headquarters in a county that has 20,000 more registered Republicans than Democrats. The event is sponsored by Democrats/Labor United of Ventura County.