Who Is Behind the Mysterious One Fresno Coalition PAC?

The fog is beginning to lift on the One Fresno Coalition independent expenditure group sowing confusion by piggybacking on Mayor Jerry Dyer’s “One Fresno” brand.

Dyer says he isn’t associated with the group, which is distributing mailers endorsing candidates in four city council races on the June 2 primary ballot.

Former Fresno County Supervisor Henry R. Perea — surmised to be the power behind the PAC by some insiders — says he doesn’t have a thing to do with it.

However, Perea adds that he is backing the same four candidates in the One Fresno Coalition brochure: Rob Fuentes (District 1), Fernando Alvarez (District 3), Danielle Parra (District 5), and Nav Gurm (District 7).

Meanwhile, political consultant Alex Tavlian says, “Since its formation, the One Fresno Coalition has properly filed its paperwork ensuring complete disclosure of the committee’s expenditures.”

Tavlian also told me that the PAC will fulfill all of its reporting requirements.

You might remember that the City Attorney’s Office fined him $1,000 for failing to file disclosure statements for the Fresno Future Forward PAC in the 2025 city council special election. In that race, Brandon Vang overcame a Fresno Future Forward hit piece to win the District 5 seat.

Dyer: Name Create Confusion

Now, about that name.

“The One Fresno Coalition has definitely created some confusion in the minds of people who have questioned whether the coalition is the same as my One Fresno Foundation, and, or if, I am part of this particular political action committee,” Dyer told GV Wire. “Most people in Fresno continue to associate the words ‘One Fresno’ with my administration.”

Although he didn’t come out and say it, my guess is that Dyer is none too pleased with the group’s name choice. The second-term mayor has spent years promoting “One Fresno” as he tries to convince the city’s divergent neighborhoods and political forces to row in the same direction.

Now someone has carjacked his brand, as well as that of the One Fresno Foundation, a Dyer-led nonprofit promoting prosperity “in every neighborhood and community.”

Insiders know the difference between the political group and the real “One Fresno,” but they comprise just a handful of votes in an election. How many voters will see the flyer and think that it represents Dyer’s recommendations?

“They’re trying to dovetail with the mayor’s group and attempt to create a little confusion,” says Fresno political consultant Mark Scozzari, who is involved in three judicial races, as well as former sheriff Margaret Mims’ bid to join the Fresno County Board of Supervisors.

“Certainly, there is a lack of creativity and it’s going to piss off the mayor.”

Tavlian: We Are Embracing the Mayor’s Vision

The still-unidentified revealed money behind the One Fresno Coalition is betting enough voters are swayed to provide an edge for its candidates in what figures to be a low-turnout election.

For the record: Tavlian says there’s nothing nefarious about the name choice.

“Nearly seven years ago, our mayor brought the vision of One Fresno to our city,” Tavlian said. “2026 is proving consequential for our city’s future, and we want to embrace candidates who will carry that vision forward.”

Gurm, who is pitted against three others in the race for the open District 7 seat, said he, too, is curious about One Fresno Coalition’s funders.

“I have no information on who is behind it, but I am a supporter of transparency,” he said. “There are multiple groups engaging independently, and I hope they’re transparent in who is funding them because that’s what our residents deserve.”

California Working Families Party

One of those groups is the progressive California Working Families Party, which is endorsing one of Gurm’s opponents, Ariana Martinez Lott. The PAC also has endorsed Sandra Celedon, who faces Annalisa Perea in the District 31 state Assembly race, and Jane Kim for state Insurance Commissioner.

Until recently, Kim was state director of California Working Families Party, so it would have been real news if she hadn’t earned the group’s endorsement.

You can view California Working Families Party donors through April 18 at this link. The group is the California arm of the New York-based Working Families Party.

Do Your Homework

Cracks in California’s campaign finance laws allow unscrupulous independent expenditure groups to cloud disclosure or delay it until late in the election cycle.

There also are ways for political operatives to set up payments for printing and mailing so that disclosure is avoided until after the election. Those who do risk the wrath of the state Fair Political Practices Commission.

Bottom line: Don’t vote based on campaign brochures, in which all of the candidates are bright, beautiful, and fighting for you. Or, on opposition campaign brochures in which the candidates are dumb, ugly, and in the pocket of special interests.

Do your own research, remember that the past is predictive of the future, and follow the money.

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