Skip to content
CapRadio

CapRadio

listen live donate
listen live donate
listen live
donate
  • News
    • News

    • State Government
    • Environment
    • Health Care
    • Race and Equity
    • Business
    • Arts and Lifestyle
    • Food and Sustainability
    • PolitiFact California
    News
    • News

    • State Government
    • Environment
    • Health Care
    • Race and Equity
    • Business
    • Arts and Lifestyle
    • Food and Sustainability
    • PolitiFact California
  • Music
    • Music

    • Classical
    • Jazz
    • Eclectic

    • Daily Playlist
    Music
    • Music

    • Classical
    • Jazz
    • Eclectic

    • Daily Playlist
  • Podcasts & Shows
  • Schedules
  • Events
  • Support
    • Support
    • Ways to support
    • Evergreen Donation
    • One-Time Donation
    • Corporate Sponsorship
    • Vehicle Donation
    • Stock Giving
    • Legacy Giving
    • Endowment Support
    • Members
    • Member Benefits
    • Member FAQ
    • Member Newsletter

    • Fund drives
    • Drawing Winners
    • Thank You Gifts
    Support
    • Support
    • Ways to support
    • Evergreen Donation
    • One-Time Donation
    • Corporate Sponsorship
    • Vehicle Donation
    • Stock Giving
    • Legacy Giving
    • Endowment Support
    • Members
    • Member Benefits
    • Member FAQ
    • Member Newsletter

    • Fund drives
    • Drawing Winners
    • Thank You Gifts
  • About
  • Close Menu

A majority-women Sacramento City Council swears in for the second time in city history

  •  Kristin Lam 
Monday, December 12, 2022 | Sacramento, CA
Courtesy of the council members

(From left) Sacramento City Council members Lisa Kaplan, CaityMaple, Karina Talamantes, KatieValenzuela and Mai Vang. Sacramento has a majority-women City Council for the first time since 1992.

Courtesy of the council members

A majority-women Sacramento City Council will lead the city for the second time in its history starting Tuesday, when newly-elected members start their terms. 

While the city has grown since 1992, when it last had a majority-female council, two experts on women in Sacramento politics said threats against female candidates and elected officials seem to have escalated. 

Lisa Kaplan, Caity Maple and Karina Talamantes will join Katie Valenzuela and Mai Vang on the nine-member council Tuesday. Last month a man allegedly threatened the lives of three of them, as well as former Council member Angelique Ashby, according to a city statement. The alleged death threat came after months of sexist harassment, as first reported by the Sacramento Bee. 

Christine Hunter wrote the book We Can Do This! Sacramento’s Trailblazing Women and the Community They Shaped. She worked on local women’s campaigns and said there wasn’t such violence-threatening behavior in the 70s, 80s or 90s. 

“I don't know if this level of hatred and misogyny or craziness is facilitated by the mere fact of social media,” Hunter said. “But I think it's quite frightening.”

Citing the pending court case against the man who allegedly harassed her since June, Talamantes said she couldn’t comment specifically. But Talamantes said it was a scary experience that happens to female candidates and elected officials because of many factors. Society lacks protections for people who run for office, Talamantes said, adding she thinks the federal government should hold online platforms like Facebook, Instagram and Twitter accountable.

In April before the primary election, Talamantes participated in an online candidate forum over Zoom where users showed pornography and sent sexist and racist messages. 

“You kind of become numb to it, to be honest,” Talamantes said. “That Zoom bomb was terrible and it was awful, but also I've had a lot worse. I could probably [rank incidents on] a scale of what's been disturbing, sexist, misogynist, rude, disrespectful up to, like, scary, I am scared for my life.” 

Former Mayor Heather Fargo witnessed the Zoom bombing. Fargo served on the last majority-women council, which spanned from 1989 to 1992. She was a council member from 1989 to 2000 and mayor from 2001 to 2008. 

Looking back, Fargo said she wasn’t sure the threats she received were as horrific. Fargo said at one time her staff received a picture of a man and were told to call police if they ever saw him enter City Hall. The building didn’t have metal detectors back then, Fargo said. 

“Local elected people are in much closer contact than anybody at the state or national level with their constituents, so it can be scary,” Fargo said. “But overall, I felt pretty good. I was still going to places by myself and doing the things I felt I needed to do to represent the city.”

When she served on Sacramento’s first majority-women council, Fargo said she doesn’t think she realized how special it was. Fargo now leads the Capital Women’s Campaign, which tries to bring more women into politics in the Sacramento area. She added she is excited for the new majority and hopes it lasts longer than three years. 

Hunter, who wrote the book on the history of Sacramento’s female political leaders, said it’s about time the city had a majority-women council again. After Talamantes, Kaplan and Maple swear in, a total of 21 women will have served on the Sacramento City Council since 1849. 

“I think that in my book, it was easy to conclude that women have more of a caring touch in terms of the way they behave on the City Council,” Hunter said. “They're more interested in basic services [and] things like child care. Their basic constituent relationships are very thorough and I think that will be repeated in this period.”

Research shows women approach political leadership more collaboratively than men, Sacramento State Political Science Professor Kim Nalder previously told CapRadio. Throughout California, men still outnumber women in elected city offices, according to a study by the Center for American Women and Politics. 

Talamantes was born in 1989, when Sacramento elected a majority-female council for the first time. She said it’s unacceptable that it’s taken 33 years to reach the milestone again. 

“It's going to be our job to continue lifting up other women and making sure that we're represented across all levels,” Talamantes said. 

Newly-elected members take the oath of office Tuesday during the council’s 5 p.m. meeting.


Follow us for more stories like this

CapRadio provides a trusted source of news because of you.  As a nonprofit organization, donations from people like you sustain the journalism that allows us to discover stories that are important to our audience. If you believe in what we do and support our mission, please donate today.

Donate Today  

    More about Election 2022

  • Election 2022: Latest updates and results

    See all of CapRadio's coverage of the 2022 Election, including our guide to voting in the Sacramento region.

    Related Content

  • Courtesy of the city

    Sacramento City Council guide: Here’s what it does and how residents can engage with it

    Tuesday, December 13, 2022
    Here’s a guide to how the Sacramento City Council works and how residents can engage with elected officials who represent them. CapRadio News will keep this guide updated.
  • Changes coming to Sacramento City Council could include majority-women council, more people of color

    Thursday, October 20, 2022
    After the November election, Sacramento could see a majority-women City Council for the first time since 1992, as well as more members of color.

 Election 2022

Kristin Lam

Sacramento Government Reporter

As CapRadio’s Sacramento Government Reporter, I focus on covering Sacramento City Hall and connecting policy decisions to people’s daily lives.  Read Full Bio 

 @kristinslam Email Kristin Lam

Sign up for ReCap and never miss the top stories

Delivered to your inbox every Friday.

 

Check out a sample ReCap newsletter.

Thanks for subscribing!

Thank you for signing up for the ReCap newsletter! We'll send you an email each Friday with the top stories from CapRadio.

Browse all newsletters
 We Get Support From:
Become a Supporter 
 We Get Support From:
Become a Supporter 

Back to Top

  • CapRadio

    7055 Folsom Boulevard
    Sacramento, CA 95826-2625

    •  
      (916) 278-8900
    •  
      (877) 480-5900
    •  Contact / Feedback
    •  Submit a Tip / Story Idea
  • About

    • Mission / Vision / Core Values
    • Stations & Coverage Map
    • Careers & Internships
    • Staff Directory
    • Board of Directors
    • Press
  • Listening Options

    • Mobile Apps
    • Smart Speakers
    • Podcasts & Shows
    • On-Air Schedules
    • Daily Playlist
    • Signal Status
  • Connect

    •  Facebook
    •  Twitter
    •  Instagram
    •  YouTube
  • Donate

  • Listen Live

  • Newsletters

CapRadio stations are licensed to California State University, Sacramento. © 2023, Capital Public Radio. All Rights Reserved. Privacy Policy | Website Feedback FCC Public Files: KXJZ KKTO KUOP KQNC KXPR KXSR KXJS. For assistance accessing our public files, please call 916-278-8900 or email us.