When it comes to elections, most people are thinking about the 2024 presidential and congressional races. But former poultry company leader Leo Zacky already has 2026 on his mind.
Zacky, a member of the family that ran longtime U.S. turkey producer Zacky Farms, seeks to become the next governor.
Zacky Farms went out of business in 2019 after having been in business for decades. At the time, Lillian Zacky, company CEO and Leo Zacky’s grandmother, said: “After four generations and an enormous effort to keep the company in sync with the fast pace of changing times, we are no longer able to keep up with business as usual. We have put our best foot forward, but as we struggled in the current state of the industry conditions, it has been impossible for us to continue profitably.”
At the time, Zacky Farms was the 18th largest turkey producer in the United States.
According to a biography on Leo Zacky’s campaign website, he grew up around Zacky Farms and in 2008, at the age of 20, shortened his time as a college student to be a part of the family business amid challenging times.
Though his time with Zacky Farms and the California Poultry Federation, Zacky became familiar with government operations and regulations. He is applying that familiarity as he campaigns for governor.
“During those years, I learned that everything has a cost. As a rep for the business, I traveled throughout all of California, becoming familiar with the entire state. I learned how different regions have different needs and there are endless niche issues,” Zacky stated
“Running a huge poultry business involved dealing with California regulations intertwined in the day-to-day operation — such as how many birds can be maintained in an area, to satisfying massive water needs during a drought, to ensuring proper sanitation for gigantic amounts of land, providing proper insurance for everything, ensuring the land and usage was within code, managing equipment upgrades, understanding the endless California trucking laws, freight costs, labor, taxes, and minimum wage issues related to out-of-state competitors.”
Zacky, who also ran for governor in 2022, is running as a Republican.
