Meet the Candidates : 35th Assembly District

Incumbent Brooks Firestone, who represents western Ventura County, is seeking his second two-year term Nov. 5. He is being challenged by Democrat Aneesh Lele and the Natural Law Party’s Miriam Hospodar.

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Brooks Firestone

Age: 60

Occupation: Assemblyman, winemaker

Residence: Los Olivos

Education: Bachelor’s degree in economics, Columbia University

Party: Republican

Background: Grandson of the founder of Firestone Tire & Rubber Co., he left the family business in 1972 to start Firestone Winery in northern Santa Barbara County. He lost his first bid for the Assembly in 1982, but was successful on his second attempt in 1994. He is chairman of the Assembly Higher Education Committee.

Issues: Firestone wants to give parents more influence in their children’s education, stimulate the economy by eliminating excessive and duplicative government regulations, toughen criminal sentencing and parole guidelines and impose stricter penalties for violent juvenile offenders. He pledges to continue to audit the Assembly and streamline its internal operations.

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Aneesh Lele

Age: 22

Occupation: College student

Residence: Is la Vista

Education: Bachelor’s degree in political science, UC Santa Barbara; working on last course to complete a second major in business economics

Party: Democrat

Background: Since he moved from New Jersey in 1991 to pursue his college degree, Lele has been active in Democratic politics, student government and environmental groups. He was twice a delegate to the California Democratic Convention and worked on the campaign for Democratic congressional candidate Walter Capps of Santa Barbara.

Issues: Lele wants to bolster University of California funding and permit tax-free IRAs for college tuition or vocational training. He wants to persuade corporate America to provide more scholarships to minorities and women. He advocates tougher standards to graduate high school, bringing more computers into classrooms and reducing class size. He vows to safeguard the environment.

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Miriam Hospodar

Age: 45

Occupation: Museum curator, instructor

Residence: Carpinteria

Education: Bachelor’s degree in art history and South Asian studies, Oakland University, Michigan; bachelor’s degree in fine arts from California College of Arts and Crafts in Oakland, Calif.

Party: Natural Law

Background: Disillusioned by mainstream party politics, Hospodar joined the Natural Law Party two years ago when it first sprung from the transcendental meditation movement. She has been a TM center director and meditation teacher. She is now director of educational programs at the private Karpeles Manuscript Library Museum in Santa Barbara.

Issues: She advocates holistic, preventive health-care programs to reduce disease and health-care costs and suggests using meditation practices to reduce overall societal tension and crime. With a reduction in crime, disease and related public costs, she said government can cut taxes dramatically and thus stimulate the economy. She advocates moving to a 10% flat tax within a few years.