endorsements

Barbara Lee is NOT endorsing Peggy Moore

Barbara Lee is NOT endorsing Peggy Moore Politics No Responses »

Sep 082016

Congresswoman Barbara Lee is not endorsing Oakland City Council At-Large candidate Peggy Moore. And she wants to make sure everyone knows about that.

First, there was the e-mail sent to various Democratic mailing lists saying just that. Then, there were the newspaper articles to that effect. And now, in case there was anyone left who didn’t know that Barbara Lee has not endorsed Peggy Moore, here is a press release wildly distributed to press and non-press. So, in conclusion, Barbara Lee has not endorsed Peggy Moore.

California Democratic Party to Automatically Endorse Incumbents

California Democratic Party to Automatically Endorse Incumbents Politics 3 Responses »

Jan 242016

The California Democratic Party has just become a little bit more undemocratic. New rules quietly enacted by the Party give Democratic incumbents for state and federal office the automatic endorsement of the Party. While in the past an incumbent would get the Party’s endorsement if he received just 70% of the votes at a pre-convention endorsement caucus or 50%+1 of the votes at the convention, incumbents will now be automatically endorsed unless 20% of all delegates from the district to file an objection. This is harder than it sounds. While delegates may punish a bad incumbent by voting for someone else, voting for no endorsement or not voting at all, filing an actual objection to the endorsement of someone who is already sitting in office, and who therefore enjoys a significant amount of political power, is not for the faint of heart. It also means that in races where the incumbent doesn’t have a challenger to organize an objection signature drive, even unpopular incumbents will receive the party’s endorsement.

This year in Alameda county, all but one of the incumbents will be receiving the party’s automatic endorsement. The exception is Congressman Mike Honda who is facing a tough re-election fight from former Obama administration official Ro Khanna. Honda has been hurt by an ethics investigation and has lost the support of several prominent Democratic politicians. Regardless of who wins the Party endorsement, it seems likely that Khanna will unseat Honda in the fall.

While it’s understandable that the Democratic party would want to solidify its support behind incumbents, a policy that benefits the establishment against what may be more popular challengers runs the risk of further damaging the party’s own standing before voters – and the weight of the party’s endorsement. Indeed, while just two or three election cycles ago, the vast majority of candidates endorsed by the Alameda County Democratic party were elected, that number fell to about 50% in the 2014 election. Part of the reason, I believe, is that too many of the party’s endorsements are based on personal relations and politicking rather than on the personal qualifications and progressive ideology of the actual candidates.

Pleasanton: Morrison for Mayor, Sanwong for Council, Miller for School Board

Pleasanton: Morrison for Mayor, Sanwong for Council, Miller for School Board Politics No Responses »

Nov 012014

Matt Morrison

This is a quick write-up of my recommendations for Pleasanton offices. The are based on my knowledge of the candidates

Matt Morrison is a Democrat. He is an environmentalist. He stands against development in the Pleasanton area. Developers don’t like him. Developers, including James Tong and the Lim family, have an undue level of influence in the Alameda County Democratic Central Committee (ACDCC) , mostly through campaign manager and Executive Committee member Angela Ramirez-Holmes. So, in one of those ironies of politics, Matt Morrison was unable to get the Democratic endorsement because he is too environmentally conscious, too anti-development, too anti-making a few people rich.

Those are exactly the reasons why I support him. He is fighting the good fight against very wealthy, very powerful interests who are willing to sell out the people of Pleasanton for money. He has no money, he is unlikely to win the race, but I can only hope that the citizens of Pleasanton, of all political inclinations, will vote for him.

Olivia Sanwong

Olivia Sanwong serves with me in the ACDCC. She had no problems getting the Democratic endorsement, and she does deserve it. She is intelligent, well educated, committed to Pleasanton, and will bring to the City the perspective of a young professional.

I’ve spoken with Olivia about civil liberties issues, and she is concerned about the overreached of surveillance technologies used against private citizens. As this becomes a larger issue, I think her perspective will be useful in the Council.

Mark Miller

The Pleasanton School Board is in disarray. Parents are not being heard, at least once, not even allowed to speak. Changes are made without adequate consultation with the community. District staff has been leaving in droves. Parents are not happy. A change is needed.

Mark Miller is a dad. Two of his kids have graduated from Pleasanton schools. One is still in middle school. He is a smart guy, an IT professional, with an extensive history of being involved with youth. The Pleasanton School Board needs change, Miller has stepped up to the plate and has my endorsement.

Sierra Club to Candidates: Not in Our Name

Sierra Club to Candidates: Not in Our Name Politics No Responses »

Oct 312014

City Council candidates in Oakland and San Leandro try to usurp the Sierra Club endorsement

The Sierra Club is not happy. In particular, the Northern Alameda County Group of the Sierra Club seems quite angry. Political candidates are usurping its good name and in return weakening its political power.

It started with Oakland City Council District 4 candidate Jill Broadhurst. Broadhurst, the Executive Director of the East Bay Rental Housing Association did not get the Sierra Club endorsement. Indeed, it was her opponent, Annie Campbell Washington, who got it. Campbell is a pro-environment progressive. Broadhurst is not.

If you look at political candidate mailers, you will probably notice that many of them depict the logos of the organizations that have endorsed such candidate. Indeed, on one of her mailers Broadhurst included the logo for the Oakland Chamber of Commerce PAC above the caption “Proudly endorsed by the Oakland Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce.” Right next to it, she placed the Sierra Club logo. The caption, written in smaller print, reads “Proud supporting member of the Sierra Club.” Another mailer contained the phrase “For Jill” in large print next to the logo of the Sierra Club. Again, the caption saying that she is a member was written in very small print. The intent is pretty clear: to suggest to voters that Broadhurst has been endorsed by the Sierra Club.

The Sierra Club was not amused. It sent Broadhurst a cease and desist letter, stating that Broadhurst’s use of their logo infringed the Club’s trademark and that it falsely implied that she had been endorsed by them. It threatened to sue her.

Broadhurst said she wouldn’t do it again but, of course, the damage had already been done.

Deborah Cox, who is running for San Leandro City Council District 1, was more brazen. Rather than use the Sierra Club logo on her own literature, she spent $1,000 to buy space in the “Californians Vote Green” slate mailer and outright claimed that she had been “[e]ndorsed by Sierra Club.”

The “Californians Vote Green” mailer is a commercial enterprise not associated to any environmental organizations. However, it’s name and the fact that it lists candidates as endorsed by the Sierra Club, misleads voters into thinking it’s an actual Sierra Club endorsement list. When Cox’s false claim came to the attention of the Sierra Club, it may have been the proverbial stroke that broke the camel’s back.

I don’t know if Cox got a letter from the Sierra Club admonishing her, but the Chair of the Sierra Club’s Northern Alameda County Group wrote a letter to the San Leandro Times clarifying that Pauline Cutter and Corina Lopez were the only endorsed candidates in San Leandro. The Club can hope that voters who pay attention to slate mailers, also read the local newspaper. To make sure voters did get the message that Cox was not endorsed by the Sierra Club, the Club also sent out their own mailer with its logo and the heading “OFFICIAL VOTER GUIDE,” listing the candidates it actually endorsed.

This is an important matter for the Sierra Club. It wants to make sure that its name is not associated with politicians that push anti-environmental policies, as this would tarnish their own reputation with the community. But it also wants to reward with its endorsement candidates that commit to support sound environmental practice , thus encouraging more candidates to make such commitments.

The Sierra Club can only hope that Broadhust’s and Cox’s actions will not encourage candidates in future races to also rip off its name. How successful Broadhurst and Cox are in the election, may very well determine how likely that is.

Dumas and Gonzalez Best Choice for San Leandro School Board

Dumas and Gonzalez Best Choice for San Leandro School Board Politics, Schools No Responses »

Oct 122014

Evelyn Gonzalez

The San Leandro School Board has two seats open this November. The election is by plurality vote – whoever gets the most votes wins, even if they get under 50% of the total vote -, and all registered voters who live within the boundaries of the San Leandro School District can vote in both races.

The race for Area 4 is between three parents: Latrina Dumas, Chike Udemezue and Leo Sheridan. Parents Evelyn Gonzalez and Monique Taste, retired New Haven teacher Jean Kinkella, and Peter Oshinski, who runs Hayward Unified’s school lunch program, are contesting for the At-Large seat.

Among these candidates, Latrina Dumas and Evelyn Gonzalez are the clear choice: they have the most experience with our schools, a far better understanding of the challenges facing the School district and have demonstrated an unparalleled commitment to improve not just specific schools, but the district as a whole.

There are great similarities between Dumas and Gonzalez and, indeed, they have worked together over the years. They both have children that have made their way through San Leandro public schools from elementary onwards (Duma’s youngest daughter is in 5th grade). They both have been extremely involved in their kids’ schools as class parents, PTA presidents, Site Council members and more. They’ve even helped other schools with fundraising and other issues – when McKinley Elementary needed to get a computer lab, it was Gonzalez who lined up the donors and made the lab a reality.

As parents of a special needs child, they’ve both experienced the disfunctions of the special education department at the school district. They understand how it needs to be reformed to serve what is a growing population. And as parents of children of color, they’ve seen the challenges that minority children face in schools that have a mostly white faculty.

Serving in the School Board requires more than just knowing how a school works. You need to understand budgets, funding sources, state policies and the competing interests of different stakeholders. Dumas and Gonzalez, alone among the candidates, have been attending School Board meetings for a decade, reading the materials, engaging with Board members and administrators, helping craft policy and advocating on specific issues. If they are elected, they’ll be able to hit the ground running, rather than spend years trying to get up to speed.

Neither Gonzalez nor Dumas are very political, but they are both personally committed to social justice. They both volunteer with different organizations helping those in need, and they stand up for the rights of the marginalized. Finally, they are both caring and non-judgmental people. They see the potential in children, what they can do, rather than what they can’t. They believe in instilling personal responsibility, but also offering support to kids that are struggling. They will bring a sense of humanity and compassion into the School Board that is, frankly, missing.

I know less about the other candidates, in part because they haven’t been as involved in the school district. Udemezue, Sheridan and Tate are active parents in their children’s schools, but they’ve shown little interest in reaching out to the community as a whole and no desire to learn the actual mechanics of the district and the issues it faces. I don’t think Kinkella and Oshinski have had any relationship with the schools or the district. In any case, given the vast experience, knowledge and commitment that Gonzalez and Dumas have demonstrated, they are the obvious choice for School Board.

More info on Latrina Dumas: Smart Voter

More info on Evelyn Gonzalez: Voter’s Questionnaire, Candidate Statement, Smart Voter, Website, Facebook

More info on Chike Udemezue: Smart Voter, Website

More info on Leo Sheridan: Candidate Statement, Smart Voter, Website, Facebook, Twitter: @voteleosheridan

More info on Peter Oshinski: Candidate Statement, Smart Voter, Facebook

More info on Monique Tate: Smart Voter, Website,

More info on Jean Kinkella: Smart Voter, Website,

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