Audie Elizabeth Bock(born October 15, 1946) is an American film scholar and politician who served in theCalifornia State Assemblyfrom 1999 to 2000, and was elected to theSarasota County,FloridaSoil and Water Conservation District in 2018.
Audie Elizabeth Bock | |
|---|---|
| Member of theCalifornia State Assembly from the16thdistrict | |
| In office April 5, 1999 – November 30, 2000 | |
| Preceded by | Don Perata |
| Succeeded by | Wilma Chan |
| Sarasota County,FloridaSoil and Water Conservation District | |
| Assumed office 2018 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | October 15, 1946 Berkeley, California,U.S. |
| Political party | Republican(before 1994, 2016-present)[1] |
| Other political affiliations | No Party Preference(2000; 2014–2016) Democratic(2001–2013) Green(1994–1999) |
| Occupation | Film scholar |
She was elected in 1999 as aGreen Partymember during a special election forOakland's 16th Assembly District, but switched to theDemocratic Partyafter losing the 2000 election.
Early life and career
editBock was born in New York and raised inBerkeley, California,[2]the daughter of Charles K. Bock andFelicia Gressitt Bock.She attendedBerkeley High School.[3]She then attendedWellesley College,graduating in 1967.[2]
For the next five years, she lived inJapan,nearTokyo,where she taught English and helped to publish English-languagetravel books.[2]
After that, she returned to the United States to attendHarvard University,where she received amaster's degreein East Asian studies.[2]She stayed at Harvard to receive a PhD, where she wrote a dissertation on Japanese film directors. This involved returning to Japan and interviewing some directors, includingAkira Kurosawa;the two struck up a friendship as a result.[2]
Bock's dissertation was published as the 1978 bookJapanese Film Directors(ISBN0-87011-304-6).
Bock served as an assistant producer on Kurosawa's 1980 filmKagemusha.[2]
Academic career
editBock translatedAkira Kurosawa's partial autobiography,Something Like An Autobiography(ISBN0-394-71439-3), which was published in 1983 by Vintage International. In 1985 she wrote the first book-length study in English ofMikio Naruse,Naruse: A Master of the Japanese Cinema.
Bock has taught college classes, as well as teaching throughout Hayward as a K-12 and adult school substitute teacher.[citation needed]
She holds a Certificate in Non-Profit Management from the University of San Francisco.[citation needed]
In 1994, Bock joined theGreen Party.She served as a volunteer onRalph Nader's 1996 campaign for the presidency.[2]
California State Assembly
editBock was elected to the Assembly in a 1999 special election after the mid-term resignation ofU.S. CongressmanRon Dellums.Dellums' resignation caused a number of special elections that resulted in the ascension ofState SenatorBarbara Leeto Dellums' congressional seat (she had been Dellums' former chief of staff), and the rise of State AssemblymanDon Peratato Lee's Senate seat. The special election was the last in a series of five special elections in twelve months known as thespecial election musical chairs.
Bock won the 1999 election by a combination of circumstances. Although she received less than 9 percent of the vote in the February 2 special election for Perata's assembly seat, no candidate received 50 percent of the vote; this caused a runoff among the top-vote getter from each political party. Bock was helped by a lackluster campaign and a scandal involving her Democratic opponent, former Assemblyman and former Oakland mayorElihu Harris,who had received nearly 49% of the vote in the first election. Harris sent targeted mailers to households in selected precincts, mostlyAfrican American,urging voters to vote for him and receive afried chickenmeal if they presented a voting stub at selected supermarkets. There was voter backlash because of the perception of vote buying (Section 18521 of the California Elections Code prohibits offering money or "other valuable consideration" in return for voting; the Harris campaign argued the fried chicken coupons were not covered) and that the tactic had a subtext of racism. Working with Bock, in the capacity of Campaign Coordinator, John Maurice Cromwell helped build a coalition of Green Party members, disaffected Democrats and Republicans (who had no candidate in the race) to defeat Harris. Bock was outspent by Harris by a margin of better than 16 to 1 ($550,000 to $33,000).[4]
While an assemblywoman, she helped secure funding for numerous park projects, including restoration of the shores of Oakland's Lake Merritt.[citation needed]
On October 7,[5]1999, Bock left the Green Party and re-registered as "Decline to State" so that she would not have to run in the March 2000blanket primaryand thus not have to compete directly against her Democratic opponentAlameda CountySupervisorWilma Chanuntil the November 2000 General Election, by when she presumably would have had more time to fundraise. During this same period, however, her acceptance of $500 campaign contributions fromChevronandToscodrew criticism from within the Green Party. Running as an independent, Bock lost the November 2000 election and afterwards re-registered as a Democrat.
Additional runs for office
editBock announced her run againstBarbara Leein the 2002 primary as a Democrat, arguing that Lee's vote against thewar in Afghanistanwas unpatriotic.[6]She later withdrew from the race before the filing deadline.[6]
In 2003, Bock ran forGovernor of Californiain the2003 California recall.She received 3,358 votes, placing 22nd in a field of 135 candidates.
In 2008, Bock ran for a two-year term on the board of the Hayward Area Recreation & Park District.[6]Bock received 22,845 votes (46%), finishing second behind interim incumbent Paul Hodges.[7]
In 2012, Bock ran successfully for a four-year term on the Board of the Fairview Fire Protection District.
In 2014, Bock ran for the California Senate in the10th State Senate District,[8]running as having No Party Preference. She came in 5th place, with 4% of the vote.
Subsequently, she relocated to Florida and ran for the Sarasota Soil and Water Conservation District in 2018, winning office unopposed.[9]
Other activities
editBock has directed and served on boards of theater, arts and cultural organizations.[citation needed]
She also directs a scholarship for low-income youth to receive free horseback riding lessons.[citation needed]
Personal life
editBock is a single mother of one daughter.[citation needed]
An avid horsewoman, she rides in Castro Valley and Hayward.[citation needed]
References
edit- ^"Audie Bock, Sarasota, FL".Florida Voter Registration archive data.Retrieved8 August2021.
- ^abcdefgGreen will bring new tone to AssemblyArchivedMay 2, 2014, at theWayback Machine,Patrick Hoge,Sacramento Bee,April 2, 1999
- ^"Three Were Accepted--They'll Attend Wellesley".The Berkeley Gazette.1963-07-31. p. 6.Retrieved2024-03-04– via Newspapers.
- ^Victory by California Assembly Candidate Is First for Greens,Bill Staggs, April 4, 1999,The New York Times
- ^Ballot Access News Nov 1 1999
- ^abcThe return of Audie BockArchived2008-12-01 at theWayback Machine,Contra Costa TimesPolitical Blotter, Josh Richman, August 8, 2008
- ^"Home".Audie Bock.Retrieved6 January2018.
- ^2014 Candidates List,East Bay CitizenSteven Tavares, March 20, 2014
- ^"Sarasota County, FL: Supervisor of Elections".sarasotavotes.Archived fromthe originalon 2018-08-09.