So today, I received the latest volley of Steve Francis mailers (it's been an average of two a day for the last two weeks). Today, there was the regular Francis stuff, but also another one that would seem to be clearly targeted at people who think (for a change). This one only mentions Steve Francis in the return address.
It has a big picture of Mayor Jerry Sanders standing next to George H.W. Bush, with the caption "Why has the Republican Party endorsed Jerry Sanders for Mayor?" It goe on to answer with statements such as "Because Sanders has no plan to protect the environment . . . Because Sanders gives favors to fat cat developers . . ." and so on.
This is really funny to me, because as I understand it, Francis is a Republican too (we do have a rather pathetic set of options this time - but I can't blame anyone for not wanting the job anyway). You really would think the Democratic Party, or a labor union made up this mailer.
At this point, I am inclined to think that Steve Francis really does not have any ambition beyond Mayor, because I can't think that clowns like Ron Nehring will ever forgive him for something like this.
In any case, it is the first time I've actually seen proof of a Republican (and yes, I know that it's a nonpartisan office - LOL) actively running against GWB in this way. I frankly have been skeptical that any Republican would actually violate St. Ronnie's commandment about speaking ill of another GOPer, but there it is.
Is it really a trend? Has anyone else seen something like this? This really is a remarkable election year.
Well, it looks like the totals are now in this a.m. This was an excellent day to be a Democrat in the Coachella Valley!!! Democrats easily won the race for Mayor in Palm Springs, one of two City Council races in Palm Springs, one of two City Council races in Desert Hot Springs, and one of two seats on the Desert Water Agency. In addition, No on C easily won as well.
What these wins mean is that progressive Democrats have gained control of Palm Springs City Council and now have a presence on both the Desert Hot Springs City Council and on the Desert Water Agency. This is evidence of the continuing surge of progressive Democratic leadership in the Palm Springs and Coachella Valley! Next step? Solidify the wins and take over the CA 80th Assembly District where Democrats now outnumber Republicans by 13,000 voters! Congratulations to all candidates, volunteers, and their supporters for fighting the good fight!
Regarding irregularities, a poll watcher reported that in some instances, the chain of custody was not completed with at least four vans arriving at the central location with only one occupant. Less serious concerns involved the 'packaging' of some of the cartridges as they were not in clear plastic bags as apparently required.
Concerning campaigning and mudslinging, Republican candidates and/or their backers issued a mailing over the weekend that was a smear campaign clearly aimed at either suppressing or redistributing the vote. Republican candidates had also been consistently attacking Pougnet, Hutcheson, Williams, and Mahlowitz as minions of 'Ma Foat,' hardly an effective approach to winning. (Ginny Foat is a City Councilwoman who during the 2005 election received the largest vote totals for any Councilperson ever and remains highly popular in Palm Springs). Republican candidates and their lackey, The Desert Sun also engaged in subliminal homophobic attacks against the above candidates, calling for a 'balanced' City Council. Most recently, City Council included three openly-gay members including Mayor Ron Oden, Foat, and Pougnet. If Pougnet, Hutcheson, and Williams all won, then four of five councilmembers would be openly-gay. (Presently, three of five Councilmembers in Cathedral City are also gay, though only two openly). 'Balanced' is now the code word amongst the Republicans in the Coachella Valley for electing White Republican heterosexuals. Another concern is the developing story involving the alleged 'illegal activities' of the General Manager and CBS affiliate Channel 2.
As expected, Steve Pougnet (D) won handily. In its editorial endorsement, the Desert Sun predicted him to win about 75% of the vote, and he almost met that estimate with 71.07%. Arlene Battishill, a resident who divides her time between Palm Springs and Los Angeles, garnered 17.73%. It is clear that Pougnet has a mandate for his first term. With this election, Palm Springs now has a Democratic mayor who will actually vote according to Democratic principles. Congratulations, Steve!!!
I'll have to check these total versus totals from prior year elections in a future post to shed further light on these amazing wins.
Elections results have been painfully slow in coming in. Thus far, as of 1:44 a.m., apparently only the Vote By Mail ballots have been counted and released to the news media. The tallies are as follows:
Mayor of Palm Springs: Steve Pougnet (D) leads with 71.61% of the vote.
Council of Palm Springs (Two Seats Open): Rick Hutcheson (D) leads with 26.26% of the vote counted thus far; John Williams (D) is in third place with 19.86%; Bob Mahlowitz (D) is in fourth place with 12.68%.
Desert Water Agency (Two Seats Open): Craig Ewing (D) is in second place with 32.70% of the vote
Proposition C: No on C votes lead with 62.02% of the total vote
Re full disclosure, BBBz is a supporter of Pougnet, Hutcheson, Williams, Ewing, Sanchez, Baker, and No on C and is a member of Desert Stonewall Democrats.
"Steven Pougnet captured Palm Springs' attention in 2003 when he was elected to City Council and through hard work and strategic thinking, he has held it ever since.
Four years later, he is mayor pro tem and wants to be mayor in an election bid characterized as one in which one man stands out from the rest. That man is Steve Pougnet."
If Steve is elected, he would be the second consecutive openly-gay Mayor of Palm Springs and the first who is Caucasian. With respect to full disclosure, BlueBeaumontBoyz is a member of Desert Stonewall Democrats, the GLBT Democratic Club or the Coachella Valley, and actively support Steve's election campaign for Mayor of Palm Springs.
For your information, the race for Mayor of Palm Springs is a non-partisan race. However, since Palm Springs is now a pre-dominantly Democratic city (refer to my earlier posts re voter registration in Palm Springs), and has the support of all three Democratic Clubs in Palm Springs, has been highly successful in raising campaign funds, and has great name recognition, Steve is generally perceived to be a heavy favorite in the Mayor's race this year.
(I've been meaning to get this up, but it's been a busy day. Welcome, Mayor Reilly. - promoted by Brian Leubitz)
My name is Emily Reilly, mayor of Santa Cruz.I am running for the Assembly in the 27th district.As a member of the Assembly I will draw on the progressive values of equality, fairness and opportunity to address the challenges faced by residents of Santa Cruz, Monterey and Santa Clara counties: protecting the environment, improving transportation and fighting for universal health care.
It is important that I communicate directly with the voters in my district – that I participate in a two-way discussion about the issues that are important to all of us.As a center of netroots activism in our state, Calitics is one avenue I hope to utilize in this discussion.Santa Cruz, Monterey and Santa Clara counties are home to strong grassroots communities, and the emergence of online political participation is a natural fit in my district.
