Celebrating Women History Month

CVV News l March 30, 2024

It’s Women’s History Month! We wanted to acknowledge and celebrate efforts of Regina Adams and Annissa Fragoso.

Both women showcase their strengths competing in March 5, 2024 campaign.
Regina Adams did what a lot of leaders in this valley say they would like smart, talented, and driven native residents to do in their lives and careers. After she was raised in Merced and attended local schools, she left for college (and in her case, law school too), and then returned home to practice in her field of expertise.

Today, the 38-year-old Adams serves Merced and Madera counties as a contract public defender. She provides legal services to indigent defendants in criminal proceedings as well as minors in delinquency proceedings.

Adams ran for an open judicial seat in this region’s Superior Court. She faced two other candidates, Monika Saini-Donabed (another local woman of color seeking change), and Carlos Dammeier, a state administrative law judge for an appeals board. Donabed won the judicial seat in the March 5 Primary Election.

Annissa Fragoso is known as a community leader, a successful small business owner, and a champion for local causes — such as improving Merced’s downtown district or speaking out about preserving this region’s water supply.

Fragoso owns an independent Farmers Insurance agency and holds the title of president of the Merced County Hispanic Chamber of Commerce.

She ran as a political candidate for the District 2 seat on the Merced County Board of Supervisors. District 2 includes the vast majority of the City of Merced and the UC Merced campus community. Fragoso was defeated by incumbent Supervisor Josh Pedrozo in a race held in the Primary Election.

The future is bright for both Regina and Annissa.

Thanks for being apart of our community.