Candidate for
County Supervisor; Santa Cruz County; Supervisorial District 3

Neal Coonerty was elected to represent Santa Cruz County's third district in June, 2006. His four-year term starting in January, 2007. In January, 2009, Supervisor Coonerty was selected by his fellow County Supervisors to serve as Chairperson of the Board of Supervisors.

Before being elected to the Board of Supervisors, Neal Coonerty was the owner and operator of Bookshop Santa Cruz in downtown Santa Cruz, a business he successfully ran since 1973. Supervisor Coonerty also served on the Santa Cruz City Council from 1990 to 1994. He was elected Mayor of Santa Cruz in 1993.

Supervisor Coonerty graduated from the University of California, Berkeley, as an English literature major in 1969. He was born in Santa Maria, California, and grew up in Van Nuys, California. His wife, Lucie, is a retired elementary school teacher. His son, Ryan, a lecturer in legal studies at UCSC and Cabrillo College, was elected to the Santa Cruz City Council in 2004, was re-elected in 2008, and served as mayor of Santa Cruz in 2008. His daughter, Casey Coonerty Protti, currently operates the family business, Bookshop Santa Cruz.