FROM TOMPKINS COUNTY LEGISLATOR KATHY LUZ HERRERA

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

September 15, 2015

Tompkins County Legislator Kathy Luz Herrera (D-2), representative for Ithacas Fall Creek and
Northside neighborhoods, announced today that she is resigning from the County Legislature,
effective September 16, 2015.
It is with great sorrow that I am announcing that I am stepping down from the Tompkins
County Legislature so that I can spend more time with my family, said Legislator Herrera, It
has been an honor and privilege to represent the people of my district and the people of
Tompkins County over these nearly 13 years.
Kathy Luz Herrera was first elected to the County Legislature in 2001. As a union electrician,
she ran to bring a working persons perspective to county government. Herreras legislative
philosophy derives from being a Latina weaned on the civil rights movement, over 27 years in
non-traditional work, and being a lifelong Democrat.
Over the past 14 years, she has put diversity, inclusion and the interests of working people in
the forefront of county government She has been a consistent proponent of green jobs,
sustainable economic development and livable wages. Shes advocated for these issues both in
her leadership roles in the Legislature and through her board positions with Tompkins
Consolidated Area Transit, Tompkins Community Action, and the Tompkins County Industrial
Development Agency.
I have had the special privilege of being a voice for people who are underrepresented on our
legislature -- working people, the LGBT community, union labor, people of color, and those who
have been incarcerated. In our community -- where intelligence, involvement and passions run
high -- it has been a privilege to earnestly and deeply work toward what I believe to be the best
interests of the county. I know that the Legislature is in good hands with my colleagues, she
said.
A native Texan, Herrera and Jill, her partner of more than 25 years, have lived in Fall Creek
since 1988 and owned a house in Fall Creek since 1992.
A special election will be held on November 3rd, 2015, to elect a new County Legislator to
represent District 2.
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For inquiries, contact:
Kathy Luz Herrera. 607-273-8169