District Election Q&A with extra Q's

The day is fast approaching when your say in our city government via our elected city councilmembers will be reduced by 80%.  Deal with it.  We hit most of the high points back in October here.  Now the city clerk is getting in front of some questions via this blurb in the city e-newsletter--several of which you have to admit are sort of funny/sad:

Here is some information to clear up questions that you may have.

When will the City hold district elections?   The City’s first district election will take place on November 8, 2022 for Districts 1, 3, and 5. To review the five districts, go to: https://www.burlingame.org/departments/city_clerk/district_elections/index.php

Do you have to live in the district to run for that Council seat?  Yes, you must live in the district to run for that Council seat. This is verified based on your voter registration.

Do you have to live in the district to vote for that Council seat?  Yes. Beginning with the November 2022 election, registered voters will only vote for the Council seat that is in their district. Therefore, if you live in Districts 2 or 4, you won’t vote for a Councilmember until November 2024.

When does candidate filing open for the three Council seats on the November 2022 ballot?

Candidate filing (when an individual interested in running for Council pulls their nomination papers and files their Declaration of Candidacy) will open for these three seats in mid-July. All necessary paperwork must be filed with the City Clerk’s Office by mid-August. However, some interested candidates may want to start raising money for their race. This is separate from the candidate filing period and is done by opening a campaign committee with the Fair Political Practices Commission. 

Additional questions?  Reach out to City Clerk Meaghan Hassel-Shearer at [email protected] or at (650) 558-7203

You have to admit, the second and third questions call into question some of our fellow voters' grasp on the electoral process.  I'm interested in how a candidates' forum will run--or should it be forums?  If candidates are not running against each other since they are in different districts, should they not have their own candidates' night?  Do we then have three of those in the Fall?  And can we ditch the League of Women Voters as the emcees for these?  They seemed particularly clueless in the last few debates.  Maybe the city clerk could ask the audience's questions?

One thing to watch will be the campaign donations from within and outside of the shiny new districts.  A strong candidate may run in their tiny new district,but raise money from all over town.  Here's some background on the new "rules".  One thing I will be watching is how much moola comes from outside the city.  Recently we saw a carpetbagger, now departed, raise a lot of money from all over the country from people who couldn't find B'game without the map app on their phones.

I hope this giant experiment doesn't unravel in front of our eyes come November.

Comments

[Cassandra]

Seems we’re losing more and more control over government…

There’s hope on the corner next to Peets Coffee. People have been soliciting signatures for two ballot measures.
to get on the November ballot.

One is to repeal and replace the one that keeps parents from giving their home to their children. You’ll recall the taxes prevent the parents giving their children the home unless one parent dies. The housing shortage can be helped by providing more moving pieces. Right now us old folks will stay in our homes until we pass away.

The other is for school choice; giving money directly to parents to choose which schools are best for their kids. This provides equity in school choice and lets the market pressure improve teachers’ performance through competition.

Look for these measures and sign up to strengthen families.

[Cassandra]

California Education Savings Account Initiative (2022)

[Cassandra]

California Changes to Tax Assessment on Inherited Homes Initiative (2022)

[JP]

I guess some voter suppression is OK with some people.

[Joe]

Belmont is headed in a slightly different direction if I am reading this right. They have a five-member city council like we do. They are moving to four district seats and an at-large mayoral seat which I assume would be a four-year seat like all the others. I don't particularly like that idea and am just posting it because it's interesting. Leaving the mayor designation with one person for that long seems like a bad idea:

https://www.smdailyjournal.com/news/local/belmont-redistricting-process-in-final-stretch/article_ee9de8fa-99e9-11ec-9266-9b5e27ebe69f.html

My original idea of having the five district-based seats and two more at-large seats, thus growing the council and maintaining some sense that people get more than ONE vote is better. Alas, not gonna happen.

[Phinancier]

Since we are going to have five or ten thousand new residents in town why not expand the city council?

[HMB]

San Bruno is going to do the same as Belmont with district seats and an at-large mayor.

[Joe]

Here's today's news. 17+7 years is a long time, so lots of congrats are in order:

Longtime Burlingame Councilmember Ann O’Brien Keighran announced this week she will not seek reelection at the end of her current term, capping a public service tenure that’s included 17 years on the City Council and seven years on the Planning Commission.

Her retirement from the council will avoid a race between her and Councilmember Michael Brownrigg, who served since 2009. November’s election will be the city’s first to be held by-district, wherein voters living in one of five districts will vote only for a single candidate who must also live in the district. The city adopted a district map earlier this year.

While the map puts Keighran and Brownrigg in the same district based on their home addresses, Keighran said that was not a factor in her decision.

“The districting didn’t have any sway on my decision whatsoever,” she said. “If I decided to run again I think I would have had a really good campaign … I know there are plenty of people out there that want me to run.”

https://www.smdailyjournal.com/news/local/burlingames-ann-o-brien-keighran-is-set-to-retire/article_81977674-d015-11ec-ba99-5f7bdde7712e.html?utm_source=smdailyjournal.com&utm_campaign=%2Fnewsletters%2Fheadlines%2F%3F-dc%3D1652191214&utm_medium=email&utm_content=headline

[Paloma Ave]

For those of us who appreciate common sense, we now only have one 'good' one left, instead of two.

[Joe]

The city e-newsletter delivered this appeal for candidates today. All you aspiring council members should note that you can find the district boundaries here : https://www.burlingamevoice.com/2021/10/city-council-five-little-districts.html#comments

Two have incumbents, one is open

District 1 - Letter D has Brownrigg (Ann Keighran is retiring)
District 3 - Letter C has Ortiz
District 5 - Letter B is open, but there is at least one candidate in queue

Here is the city announcement:

Candidate Filing for the November 8, 2022 Election Opens Monday, July 18

The November 8, 2022 election will be the City’s first district based election, with candidates for District 1, District 3, and District 5 on the ballot. Registered voters will now vote only for the Council seat in their district. To find which district you live in, go to www.burlingame.org/districtelections.

Individuals who wish to run for one of the three seats on the November ballot must:
• Be a registered voter and live in the district in which they are running
• Set up an appointment with the City Clerk by email: [email protected] or phone: 650-558-7203 to begin the candidate filing process
• Complete all necessary paperwork and file with the City Clerk’s office between July 18 and August 12

The County Elections Office is holding a candidate seminar on July 22 at 2:00 p.m. This seminar will cover important topics including filing deadlines, filing forms, candidate statement, campaign finance reports, and voter data. To RSVP for the meeting and receive the Microsoft Teams link, go to: https://www.smcacre.org/elections/rsvp-candidate-filing-seminars

If you have questions about running for City Council, reach out to City Clerk Meaghan Hassel-Shearer at [email protected] or at 650-558-7203

[Perhaps Russ should run again.]

Hey doesn't Russ Cohen live in District 5/B? He went back and forth with Ortiz on the election results, when Ortiz won (2nd time Ortiz had run). Perhaps Russ should run again.