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By Anita Varghese
Special to The Lookout
May 16 -- Negative advertising, the lack of women
and minority candidates and the influence of big money were
among the concerns expressed by some of the 150 residents
who packed a community meeting Monday to discuss the local
electoral process.
Sponsored by the City Clerk’s Office at the direction
of the City Council, the meeting was an effort to gather public
input on the many facets of the City election process and
alternatives to current practices.
Among the issues addressed is the need to keep elections
“voter-owned” and not controlled by special interests,
adjusting the $250 campaign contribution limit, ranked voting,
public financing of campaigns and what to do about unlimited
independent campaign expenditures.
Most residents at Monday’s meeting agreed that the
election process in Santa Monica works “pretty well”
with some changes needed, while some called for significant
and large-scale reforms. City Attorney Marsha Moutrie cautioned
that some of the proposed reforms would be difficult, if not
impossible.
“I am not here to rain on anyone’s parade, but
part of my job is to rain on parades, and I would rather rain
before the parade starts and not during the parade,”
Moutrie said.
“Many people who are interested in election reform
and campaign finance reform are well aware that the First
Amendment is a limitation on many efforts to improve election
processes. It is not a limitation on all of them, but it is
a significant factor in the efforts that many communities
across the country and several in California have recently
made.”
Some who showed up at the meeting at the Ken Edwards Center
applauded the City’s $250 campaign contribution limit
and its timely disclosure of campaign finance disclosure statements
and election results.
They also thanked CityTV and the League of Women Voters of
Santa Monica for sponsoring free candidate forums and debates
and complimented the City Clerk’s office for holding
free candidate workshop at the start of each election season.
Many, however, were dismayed that the identity of special
interest groups is often revealed too late in the election
season, sometimes months after the votes are counted.
And some complained that Santa Monica does not have a level
playing field, with Santa Monicans for Renters’ Rights,
business groups and public employees unions wielding political
clout that makes it difficult for independent candidates to
win.
Still, they also agreed that term limits are not the answer,
because they would force intelligent Council members out of
office and empower lobbyists. Neither is carving the 8.3-square-mile
city into council districts, which would encourage council
members to focus on issues in their own districts, rather
than addressing citywide concerns.
Those present seemed divided over whether to allow the voters,
instead of the council, to elect a mayor, or whether to use
a ranked voting system similar to a series of runoff elections.
Under the system, voters rank candidates in order of preference.
If a candidate receives a majority of the first choice rankings,
that candidate is elected.
If no candidate receives a majority, the last place candidate
is eliminated and all ballots are counted again with each
ballot cast for the defeated candidate counting for the second
candidate listed on each ballot. The process of elimination
continues, and ballots are recounted until one candidate receives
a majority of the votes.
The three most common complaints voiced by residents were
the lack of women elected to the City Council (of the seven
council members, Pam O’Connor is the only woman), as
well as the lack of minorities and those under age 40, and
the dearth of regulations to stop or punish those responsible
for smear campaigns.
There was no easy solution proposed to diversify the council,
though some suggested that longtime council members voluntarily
step down and mentor candidates from different backgrounds
on how to win an election.
The City Clerk’s Office will continue to accept public
input through various means in the next few weeks or months
until a staff report is prepared for a yet-to-be scheduled
presentation to the City Council.
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