Contra Costa Times Lisa Vorderbrueggen column [Contra Costa Times]
By Lisa Vorderbrueggen, Contra Costa Times | |
McClatchy-Tribune Information Services |
As folks will recall, Councilman-elect
After November's election battle between warring factions, Richmond voters are understandably concerned about who will step into the seat.
The outcome could produce a third vote for
Or this individual could side with the unapologetically pro-Chevron councilmen
The progressives say it is only fair to appoint their man
They call a special election a waste of money that will further polarize the voters and hand Chevron another opportunity to spread lies.
Even Councilman
With all due respect to Butt, these arguments leak like a Delta levee.
In city after city, year after year, when a vacancy pops up outside the election cycle, the guy or gal who finishes just out of the money cries, "The voters already chose me!"
If the council believes the fairest
path to an appointment is to select the latest candidate who lost by the least number of votes, then it must apply that philosophy without regard for the individual's politics or it becomes an expedient and self-serving argument.
Second, why are regular election expenses appropriate and special elections a fiscal travesty?
The council didn't choose to have a vacancy. It's unclear when or if Bell will recover sufficiently to do the job. It needs seven members to avert tie votes and conduct business.
The
As for the idea that a special election is uniquely divisive and will lead to even greater campaign horrors, do the people who make these points advocate putting a stop to elections altogether in Richmond? Where have they been for the last 50 years?
Yes, elections in Richmond and everywhere are brutal.
It's unfortunate, but arguing that voters require protection from their own election system is absurd.
Money is an undeniable force but it offers no guarantees. Just ask
So, let the would-be council members come forward
Maybe someone will dazzle the council and win four votes. If not, voters will step up and do the job.
And if either camp makes a bad call, that's the beauty of elections: Voters always have another chance to get it right.
stampede: Eighteen people filed applications as of Friday's
As expected, the list includes
Martinez Mayor
But there was a surprise: Pleasant Hill Councilman
The board of supervisors is scheduled to appoint a clerk-recorder in February. The winner must then stand for election in 2014 for the
AND FINALLY: How many 21-year-olds receive a personal commencement address from a former congresswoman, high-ranking
That would be
Tauscher shared her maternal wisdom during a speech at Thursday's annual
First, Tauscher gave her collegiate athlete (volleyball) daughter permission to relax.
"I told her, 'Blow it out!' Short of going to jail, of course,'" Tauscher joked.
Secondly, she said she advised her daughter and the rest of us, "Go big and take risks."
Short of going to jail, of course.
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