Who Rules Santa Rosa and Why It Matters

A "seismic shift" occurred in Santa Rosa, Calif. politics between 2004 and 2008, putting a progressive majority in power on the City Council for the first time ever. Who rules Santa Rosa describes the defeat of the long-reigning pro-developer political machine and analyzes the underlying political dynamics; the change matters because the makeup of the City Council will decide the path of Santa Rosa's growth management, social changes and sustainability. About The Author: M. James (Jim) Wilkinson moved to Santa Rosa in 1999, a few years after retiring from his American Foreign Service career. As a US diplomat, Jim had several postings abroad, including to Thailand, Australia, East Germany and the Soviet Union; he also held appointments as Deputy US Representative on the UN Security Council with the rank of Ambassador, and as Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for European Affairs. While living in Santa Rosa, Jim has been active in civic and political affairs. He was a founding member of the Neighborhood Alliance of Santa Rosa and its Chair for 2009/10. He has worked with several other community organizations and and coached students from Roseland University Prep for the Model United Nations program a UC Berkeley. In 2008, he received a City Merit Award for public service. Jim's earlier writings have included a number of monographs on foreign affairs. In the US in 2007, he published Our Last Best Hope: Why the UN stumbles and What the US should do about it, based on a book he previously coauthored, the Third Try: Can the UN Work?, which was published in Australia and also translated into German for publication in Germany. Jim's wife, Ellen Boneparth, is a retired university Dean, writer and community activist. The couple and their Greek-born cat Ani live in downtown Santa Rosa's Cherry Street Historic District.