Tag Archives: 12th Congressional District

Candidates set for June 3 Statewide Direct Primary

Posted on March 10, 2008 by Rebekah Gordon| Leave a comment

With the filing deadline now passed (it was 5 p.m. on Friday), we now have a solid idea of who will be on the ballot come June 3. See the full list of who filed in San Mateo County.

Most important to note is that the extension period does not apply to any races for this Statewide Direct Primary. In all races where the incumbent was eligible to run, he or she filed for another run at the Elections Office, closing the filing period for good. (In cases where an eligible incumbent does not file, the filing period is extended for three days to encourage more first-time office seekers.)

So, some highlights for you:

Four of the five Democratic County Central Committee districts will have contested elections. The second and fifth districts each have nine candidates vying for four seats! One Republican County Central Committee election, for the third district, is also contested.

The 12th Congressional District race for the 2009-11 term is also chock full o’ candidates. Following the death of U.S. Rep. Tom Lantos, who held the seat since 1981, the field is wide open. Between San Mateo and San Francisco counties, it appears that nine candidates have filed to run for the seat. It will be up to the Secretary of State to provide a final certified list of candidates.

Another big race for San Mateo County is the 19th Assembly District. Gene Mullin is termed out, leaving the seat wide open, and six citizens have responded to the call.

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Actually, make that five candidates for the special congressional open primary

Posted on February 27, 2008 by Rebekah Gordon| 2 Comments

O.K., we admit it.

We screwed up with yesterday’s post about three candidates for the April 8 Special Congressional Open Primary Election, and we apologize. It actually appears that there will be five. And though we used the phrase “it’s official” preceeding those three candidates, we technically can’t say that either, because it’s up to the Secretary of State to certify the list of candidates. She has until March 3 to do so.

The reason we screwed up is embarrassingly simple: we’re so enveloped by our San Mateo County tunnel vision that we failed to check to see which potential candidates had filed with San Francisco County. Remember, the 12th Congressional District also includes part of San Francisco.

You’ll see that there’s two candidates on this list who did not file in San Mateo County, but that doesn’t exclude or disqualify them. Since the seat crosses county boundaries, the Secretary of State becomes the official “elections office.” We simply perform the filing duties and forward the results to the state, and it’s up to her office to certify everything. (And, by the way, here are the official qualifications and requirements for becoming a certified candidate.)

So, here is the official unofficial list. Remember, it won’t really be official until we get the certified list on March 3.

    · Jackie Speier, Democratic, former state senator, of Burlingame;

    · Mike Moloney, Republican, retired businessman, of Foster City;

    · Greg Conlon, Republican, businessman/CPA, of Atherton;

    · Barry Hermanson, Green, equity investor, of San Francisco; and

    · Michelle T. McMurry, Democratic, health policy director, of San Francisco.

It’s still true that if one candidate receives a majority (50 percent plus one) of votes, that candidate is declared the winner and no general election is held. But, based on the addition of two candidates, let us stand corrected on what happens if no candidate receives a majority of the votes. In that case, now, Hermanson and the top vote-getters from the Democratic and Republican parties will be placed on the ballot for a special congressional general election, which will be held on June 3 in conjunction with the Statewide Direct Primary Election.

We hope you can forgive us for the slip-up.

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Three candidates for special congressional open primary

Posted on February 26, 2008 by Rebekah Gordon| 1 Comment

It’s official – there will be three candidates for the April 8 Special Congressional Open Primary for the 12th Congressional District. With the filing deadline closed yesterday, we know who will be on the ballot:

    · Jackie Speier, Democratic former state senator, of Burlingame;

    · Mike Moloney, Republican retired businessman, of Foster City; and

    · Greg Conlon, Republican businessman/CPA, of Atherton.

U.S. Capitol DomeSpeaking of ballots, a reminder that, as an open primary, all candidates will appear on the same ballot. Voters can vote for whomever they choose, regardless of political party affiliation.  If a single candidate receives a majority of the vote (50 percent plus one), then that candidate is declared the winner and no general election is necessary. If no candidate receives a majority of the vote, Speier and the top vote-getter from the Republican party will be placed on the ballot for a special congressional general election, which will be held on June 3 in conjunction with the Statewide Direct Primary Election. Read more about how the special congressional election works in our previous post.

Now, don’t go and get yourself confused, as the candidates running in this race are different than the candidates running for the seat in the June 3 Statewide Direct Primary. The April 8 election is only to fill the remainder of the unexpired term for the district. The term ends on Jan. 3, 2008, and was vacated after U.S. Rep. Tom Lantos died from esophageal cancer on Feb. 11. Candidates running in the June 3 Statewide Direct Primary are vying for the regular two-term that begins on Jan. 4, 2009. The filing deadline for that race isn’t until March 7, so we are still uncertain what the final candidate pool will look like (but here are filings so far).

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Aiming to go all-mail for special congressional election

Posted on February 21, 2008 by Rebekah Gordon| 22 Comments

With the support of our county Board of  Supervisors, we’re aiming to conduct the April 8 Special Congressional Open Primary Election entirely through the mail.

Pitney Bowes Relia-VoteThis is a novelty for California, and one we believe has the potential to save taxpayers money and increase voter turnout for this one-time, district-specific race.

The election was called by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to fill the seat for the 12th Congressional District that was vacated by U.S. Rep. Tom Lantos after his death on Feb. 11. The district encompasses a good portion of San Mateo County and part of San Francisco. Read more about the basics of the election in our previous post.

So we’re in the throes of solidifying a bill author, formulating bill language and seeking approval from the state legislature and the governor to conduct a pilot all-mail election, using this special race as our test case.

Our argument goes something like this:

There are 255,749 registered voters in the 12th Congressional District, with nearly 40 percent of them already permanent Vote by Mail voters. Furthermore, of the 383 precincts in the district, about 10 percent of them are designated as All-Mail precincts (Voters in those precincts vote through the mail largely because there is no facility within their precinct that meets accessibility requirements for a physical polling place).

Turnout for special elections is typically very low – we are lucky if we get 30 percent. We are further concerned that, with three major elections this year – the Feb. 5 Presidential Primary, the June 3 Statewide Direct Primary, and the Nov. 3 General Election - that voter and poll worker fatigue could set in by requiring a fourth trip to the polls in the span of ten months. 

Voters who Vote by Mail in San Mateo County have a participation rate of 70 to 85 percent, and we believe that an all-mail ballot process might further increase participation. Participation rates of registered voters who vote in person tend to hover around 40 to 50 percent. To further encourage participation, ballot envelopes will be postage paid, meaning it will cost voters nothing to return their ballot other than a trip to the mailbox.

To conduct the April 8 Special Congressional Open Primary at the polls will cost taxpayers about $1 million. We believe we can cut the cost down to $650,000 with an all-mail election. This is worth giving a second thought at a time when the state has a $16 billion budget deficit that is jeopardizing county programs. Every dollar saved helps.

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Posted in Ballots, Reform, Signature verification, Vote By Mail, Voting

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How the special congressional election works

Posted on February 20, 2008 by Rebekah Gordon| 2 Comments

We’re sure you’ve probably heard about the death on Feb. 11 of U.S. Rep. Tom Lantos, who represented much of San Mateo County in Congress for nearly three decades. But governing must move forward, and that includes filling his unexpired term through a Special Congressional Open Primary Election on April 8.  It’s a different kind of election, so you may have a few questions about how it all works.

But first we digress for a moment of reflection.

Bono speaking at memorial service at the U.S. Capitol for U.S. Rep. Tom Lantos

A survivor of the Holocaust and chairman of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, Lantos was known as a steadfast champion of human rights around the world. The committee has an archived video of his Feb. 14 memorial service at the U.S. Capitol, featuring a wash of luminaries from U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to U2 frontman Bono (who is pictured speaking here). RealPlayer is required.

On Feb. 12, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger called a special general election on June 3 to fill the remainder of the term of the 12th Congressional District seat vacated by Lantos’ death. Seems it would be easy enough, considering that we already have a Statewide Direct Primary Election scheduled for the same day.

But because this is a partisan office, the special election also requires its own primary, which is calculated by counting back eight Tuesdays. Hence, the April 8 date we referenced earlier.

This primary is different, in that it’s a open one. Regardless of political party, there is just one ballot that everyone votes, and all candidates appear on it. Voters can choose anyone.

The deadline to file to be a candidate in the special election is Monday.

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