Helene Schneider
{{Short description|American politician (born 1970)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=April 2025}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| name = Helene Schneider
| image = Helene Schneider.jpg
| caption = Helene Schneider in 2015
| alt = Helene Schneider in 2015
| office = Mayor of Santa Barbara, California
| term_start = January 11, 2010
| term_end = January 9, 2018
| predecessor = Marty Blum
| successor = Cathy Murillo
| office2 = Member of the Santa Barbara City Council
| term_start2 = January 7, 2003
| term_end2 = January 11, 2010
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1970|11|18}}
| birth_place = New York City, New York, U.S.
| death_date =
| death_place =
| party = Democratic
| residence = Santa Barbara, California
| alma_mater = Skidmore College, Professional Designation in Human Resources Management, University of California, Santa Barbara
| occupation = Human Resources Management, politician
| website = {{URL|http://heleneschneider.org/|Personal website}}
}}
Helene Schneider (born November 18, 1970) is an American politician from the Democratic Party. She was the mayor of Santa Barbara, California from 2010 to 2018, and a 2016 candidate for California's 24th congressional district.{{Cite episode |title=Candidate for 24th District, US Congress & SB Mayor Helene Schneinder |episode-link= |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2PkaBnmJjN0 |access-date=May 27, 2016 |series= City Desk with Jerry Roberts |first= |last= |network=TV Santa Barbara (TVSB) |station= |date=December 19, 2015 |season= |series-no= |number= |minutes= |time= |transcript= |transcript-url= |quote= |language=}} She was first elected mayor in 2009, succeeding Marty Blum.{{cite news | url=http://www.noozhawk.com/article/011110_helene_schneider_profile | title=Mayor-Elect Helene Schneider Looks to Bridge Political Divide | work=Noozhawk | date=January 11, 2010 | accessdate=May 17, 2016 | author=Giana Magnoli}} She won reelection to a second term in 2013. Prior to serving in government, Schneider worked at Planned Parenthood as the director of human resources for the affiliate serving Santa Barbara, Ventura, and San Luis Obispo counties.{{cite web | url=http://www.smartvoter.org/2009/11/03/ca/sba/vote/schneider_h/bio.html | title=Full Biography for Helene Schneider | publisher=The League of Women Voters of California Education Fund | date=September 19, 2009 | accessdate=May 17, 2016}}
Political career
Schneider credits former mayor Harriet Miller with giving her a start in city politics by appointing her as a Commissioner for the Housing Authority of Santa Barbara.{{cite news | url=http://www.noozhawk.com/article/010610_former_santa_barbara_mayor_harriet_miller_dies_at_90/ | title=Former Santa Barbara Mayor Harriet Miller Dies | work=Noozhawk | date=January 6, 2010 | accessdate=May 27, 2016 | author=Lara Cooper}} In 2003, she was elected to the Santa Barbara City Council and reelected in 2007. Her first political involvement on the Central Coast was working for Jack O'Connell's successful reelection campaign to the California State Assembly in 1992.
In 2009, Schneider was elected mayor in an open-seat race. She won with 45.8% of the vote followed by Dale Francisco with 33.9%, Steve Cushman with 16.3%, and two other candidates splitting the remaining votes.{{cite news | url=http://www.independent.com/news/2009/nov/04/updated-election-results/ | title=Updated Election Results | work=Santa Barbara Independent | date=November 4, 2009 | accessdate=June 6, 2016 | author= Matt Kettmann}} She was reelected mayor in 2013 in a two-way race with Wayne Scoles, winning 73% to 26%.{{cite news | url=http://www.independent.com/news/2013/nov/05/2013-city-council-election-results/ | title=2013 City Council Election Results | work=Santa Barbara Independent | date=November 6, 2013 | accessdate=June 6, 2016 | author= Nick Welsh}}
In 2016, Schneider ran for the 24th congressional district, which was left open due to the retirement of longtime representative Lois Capps. In the primary field of 9 candidates, Schneider was considered to be one of the frontrunners, alongside fellow Democrat and Santa Barbara County Supervisor Salud Carbajal, Republican Assemblyman Katcho Achadjian, and Republican Justin Fareed. However, Schneider came in fourth in the primary, with 31,046 votes (14.9%). Carbajal went on to defeat Fareed in the general election.{{cite web|url=http://www.keyt.com/news/local-news/helene-schneider-concedes-race-for-24th-congressional-district/87624345|title=Helene Schneider Concedes Race For 24th Congressional District|work=KEYT|author=Alys Martinez|date=June 8, 2016|accessdate=December 21, 2016}}
See also
References
{{reflist}}
External links
- [http://www.santabarbaraca.gov/gov/cityhall/council/default.asp/ City of Santa Barbara Mayor & City Council] official Santa Barbara Mayor & City Council website
- [http://heleneschneider.org/ Helene Schneider for Congress] official Helene Schneider for Congress website
- {{C-SPAN}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Schneider, Helene}}
Category:21st-century mayors of places in California
Category:Mayors of Santa Barbara, California
Category:Politicians from New York City
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