Morro Bay civil engineer to take on Salud Carbajal for Congress in 2018

Sept. 18--A Morro Bay civil engineer who formerly served on the Fresno City Council in the 1990s has officially announced his candidacy in the 24th congressional district race in 2018.

Michael Erin Woody, 50, owner of Struct One Engineering & Construction, will run as a Republican for the seat currently held by Democrat Salud Carbajal.

The district, which encompasses San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara counties as well as a portion of Ventura County, slightly favors Democrats but came within 3 percentage points of going to a Republican in 2014.

Woody has a master's degree in public administration from Harvard University, and he's a member of the Salinan Native American tribe.

He was elected to the Fresno City Council in 1992 at the age of 26 and was known as much for his youthful good looks, long blond hair and stylish wardrobe as for his political ambition, according to the Fresno Bee. He only served one term before losing an ill-fated campaign for the mayor's seat in 1996. A attempt to reclaim his council seat in 2000 also came up short.

Woody's platform includes reducing taxes and regulations on small-business owners, rebuilding aging infrastructure and simplifying tax code to help stimulate the economy. He opposes sanctuary cities, allowing driver's licenses for undocumented residents, single payer health insurance and the California high-speed rail system.

"Today, all of us are still dealing with the effects of an economic collapse that destroyed our economy," Woody said. "We now know that this was caused by those who were asked to lead yet failed to do their job, and by those who were well connected to the those who would not lead."

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