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Zach Friend first ran for the Santa Cruz County Board of Supervisors in 2012 and has served on the board ever since, running for reelection twice and winning. Friend cut his teeth working for the White House Council of Economic Advisors during the administration of Barack Obama. He also worked on various campaigns helping getting Democratic officials elected, including Sam Farr, the former assemblymember who represented parts of the Central Coast. Friend also worked as a public information officer and crime analyst for the Santa Cruz Police Department. He wrote a book about messaging which became a bestseller on Amazon. He lives in Aptos with his wife and son.
First elected: Nov. 6, 2012
Alma mater: Georgetown University (master’s degree, public policy); UC Santa Cruz (bachelor’s degree, history)
Notable quote: “This is the beginning of what I hope to be a new culture of ‘yes’ within county government, where we look at the problems we’ve faced for quite some time—transportation, with one in five people living in poverty and many people wondering if their kids can afford to live here. How do we say yes to opportunities to ensure that those problems aren’t faced by future generations?”
Supervisor Friend has temporarily suspended in-person constituent meetings during the pandemic. He encourages constituents to contact him via phone at (831) 454-2200 or email at zach.friend@santacruzcounty.us.
As local governments try to stretch their budgets to accommodate a new wave of mental health cases, a new program is trying to shift the emergency response from uniformed officers to trained mental health counselors.
Dec. 30, 2024, Bruce McPherson’s last day as supervisor for the Fifth District of Santa Cruz County, dawned bright and blue. After bidding farewell to his team of analysts and taking down the last mementos from his office walls, McPherson traveled to Scotts Valley for his final interview to recount the highs and lows of his career.
In a brief special meeting on Dec. 27, three Santa Cruz County Supervisors declared a local emergency, which will allow officials to request state and federal assistance for the damages from the heavy surf, winds and storm surge on Dec. 23 and 24.
