Fresno City Councilmember Mike Karbassi joined GV Wire’s Bill McEwen on Wednesday for a conversation about his campaign for the Fresno County Board of Supervisors District 1 seat.

The interview replaced a planned candidate forum after Karbassi’s opponent, Kerman Mayor Maria Pacheco, withdrew from the event.

Karbassi and Pacheco advanced from the June primary to the November runoff for the seat being vacated by longtime Supervisor Brian Pacheco.

Karbassi’s Vision for District 1

Brian Pacheco, who is not related to Maria Pacheco, is running for a state Assembly seat against former Merced Mayor Mike Murphy.

Karbassi currently represents northwest Fresno neighborhoods on the Fresno City Council.

The conversation with McEwen focused on Karbassi’s vision for District 1 and the most-pressing issues identified by residents.

The Questions

During the hour-long event, Karbassi addressed questions on these subjects:

• Southeast Development Area
• Whether the county should energize its own development efforts
• CEMEX’s request to for long-term approval to continue to mine aggregate adjacent to the San Joaquin River
• County water issues
• Privatizing county libraries
• Westside solar farms
• The impacts of President Trump’s “Big Beautiful Bill” on local healthcare and mental health services
• Whether, in the face of budget challenges, Karbassi would support cutting county positions
• The claim by Karbassi’s critics that he is becoming a “professional politician.”
• Karbassi’s leadership and governance style
• Karbassi’s assessment of the key differences between himself and Maria Pacheco

Watch the Full Conversation