Gravert working to win over voters

Debra Gravert is petite and polite -- not exactly what most people expect from a candidate running for the hotly contested 10th Assembly District. The 33-year-old Democratic candidate articulates her speech carefully, pausing to make sure the listener has absorbed every word.

"My top priority as an assembly member will be the health of our educational system," she said.

She's vying for the assembly seat vacated by Larry Bowler in a diverse district that covers southeast Sacramento and northern San Joaquin Counties, including the CSUS campus, Elk Grove and the La Riviera areas.

Gravert grew up as one of six children on a dairy farm in Nicholus, a small community north of Sacramento. She has worked as an assembly staffer for 12 years, stating out as a staffer with the Public Safety Committee. Gravert is currently the Chief of Staff to the chair of the Assembly Labor and Employment Committee, Dick Floyd.

"I've been working for the legislature for 12 years, and in the era of term limits, I think that my experience will be an asset in the Assembly," said Gravert in an interview after appearing on campus as part of ASI's Political Awareness week.

She's small and businesslike in person, and is excited to speak with students on campus. Gravert does have one complaint about CSUS, however.

"It took me 20 minutes to find a parking spot," she said.

Gravert is a graduate of Heald Business College of Sacramento and talked of her concerns about education, mentioning her four-year-old daughter, Jordan, often.

"By the time Jordan goes to college, I'm worried about whether my husband and I will be able to afford it," she said.

She goes on to explain her position on the fee increases levied on state college students in the last decade.

"Legislators have been balancing the state budget on the backs of students in the UC and CSU system for years," said Gravert. "I don't think I could ever vote for a student fee increase."

This is Gravert's first time running for office. She's running against Republican Anthony Pescettii, a valley businessman who will be featured in next week's issue of the State Hornet, and faces voters who are equally divided between Democrats and Republicans.

According to the Secretary of State's Web site, 43 percent of the voters in the district are Democrats and 43 percent are Republicans. The district is considered to lean toward the conservative side of political issues.

Along with issues in education, Gravert supports an increase in the minimum wage and advocates eight-hour workdays and overtime pay. She says she supports a reduction in the state sales tax and opposes Measure M, a measure on the ballot for Sacramento County that would increase the sales tax by .25 percent. Gravert also supports the death penalty.

Gravert currently lives in Elk Grove with husband Michael, who is a State Capitol security agent, and daughter.