Anthony Silva Is Going to be Running for Mayor

By Roger Phillips

Record Staff Writer
March 03, 2012 12:00 AM

STOCKTON - Anthony Silva, chief executive officer of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Stockton, has announced plans to run for mayor.

Silva joins Tony Stevens, 46, a native of Stockton and an Elk Grove car dealer, as a candidate to unseat incumbent Ann Johnston. Bar owner Jimmie Rishwain has said he is running for mayor and bail bondsman Ralph Lee White has said he is considering running.




Job creation, crime reduction and finding ways to get teenagers off the streets would be Silva's priorities if elected, he said Thursday.

"We need to provide more positive outlets, things that don't cost the city a lot of money but give (teens) places to go," Silva said. "There's a reason we're always making the top of the list on Forbes. It's embarrassing to me. I think the state of our city is just embarrassing."

Silva said the city should do everything it can to avoid bankruptcy.



"I think we should exhaust all resources first," Silva said. "People are always talking about whose jobs we can eliminate. I look at it differently. I want to look at how we can bring in more revenue for the city."

Silva, 37, is a Stockton native who graduated from Lincoln High School in 1993, San Joaquin Delta College in 1995 and Humphreys College in 2007. He has led the Boys & Girls Club since 2005.

Additionally, Silva is a former Stockton Unified School District trustee. Seeking re-election in 2008, he lost by one vote to Jose Morales in a bitter fight to win a second term representing southeast Stockton.

He also lost in the 2008 primary in a bid to serve on the San Joaquin County Board of Supervisors and in 2010 he was defeated in a bid to serve on the Lodi Unified school board.

In announcing his candidacy in a Wednesday speech at Variety's Banquet Hall & Terrace in Stockton, Silva touted what he said is a humble background and lifestyle.

"I am not rich nor was I born with privilege," he said, according to a copy of his speech. "I am a simple, hard-working person just like you. I drive a beat-up 2003 Honda Accord and I struggle every month to pay my bills just like many of you. I have already hit rock bottom in my life and I remember what it is like to be there and how long it took for me to climb out."

In the same speech, he also predicted a bruising battle for the mayor's seat, though he said his campaign will be "positive."

"I don't expect this campaign to be soft and easy," he said. "I will be threatened, I will have blackmail attempts toward me and I will probably be followed around. But this is Stockton politics and you are well aware that it gets nasty."

Thursday, Silva said Johnston should forgo her $82,000 salary until the city has a handle on its finances.

"I don't want the $80,000 a year until the city adopts and approves a balanced budget," he said.

Contact reporter Roger Phillips at (209) 546-8299 or rphillips@recordnet.com. Visit his blog at recordnet.com/phillipsblog.