District 10’s next senator: who can solve the big issues?

Anne Kepner is running to replace Aisha Wahab in California’s Senate District 10, and her campaign is built around three big problems: housing is too expensive, good jobs are hard to find, and healthcare costs too much for aging residents. She’s not just talking about these issues; she’s worked on them for years as a college trustee, small business owner, and attorney specializing in protecting seniors from abuse. Her background suggests she knows how policies play out in real life—like when she reviewed loans for Santa Clara seniors trying to stay in their homes or pushed for nursing programs that could help locals avoid crippling student debt. Kepner stands out from other candidates because she understands what it’s like to balance a budget, whether it’s for a small business or a family. She’s taken on corporate polluters, represented flood victims, and battled elder abuse—experience that could reshape how the state handles aging residents and workplace protections. Her focus on community colleges isn’t just about degrees; it’s about training workers for green-energy jobs, healthcare roles, and skilled trades that pay living wages. Not everyone needs a four-year degree, she argues, but everyone deserves a shot at a stable career.On housing, Kepner wants to rethink zoning laws and fast-track affordable projects, especially near transit hubs. She’s also open to converting unused government land into housing and speeding up approvals—moves that usually face resistance from slow-moving bureaucracies. For renters, she backs programs like Santa Clara’s homelessness prevention system, pushing the state to fund these efforts before people lose their homes. But her plan for first-time buyers? She’d expand down-payment help and low-interest loans, which don’t fix the core issue: prices are still out of reach for most. Her critique of Aisha Wahab’s tenure is subtle but clear—Wahab wasn’t as visible or responsive as some hoped, especially in far-flung parts of the district. Kepner promises to fix that by making herself available, but her real difference might be in tangibles: building housing, funding colleges, and keeping seniors housed. On healthcare, she’s all-in on California’s push for a single-payer system, arguing the current patchwork is unsustainable. Transit is another key—she sees BART’s financial struggles as a warning, supporting the 2026 sales tax to stabilize the system. But her bigger idea? Consolidating the Bay Area’s 27 transit agencies to make schedules and routes less confusing. And when it comes to AI, she warns against letting tech replace workers without guardrails—a balance many are still figuring out.