To: Mark Numainville, City Clerk, Zach Cowan, City Attorney, and Kristy van Herick, Secretary, Fair Campaign Practices Commission
Restore the integrity of Berkeley politics!
It’s bad enough Mayor Tom Bates and the City Council majority voted to sue (using taxpayer money) Berkeley citizens and students who worked to overturn what some call gerrymandered new district lines . Now those new district lines are on the ballot, and Mayor Bates, State Senator Loni Hancock, Assembly member Nancy Skinner, and some City Council members are resorting to illegal and unethical tactics as they try to get Measure S passed. Some of the same tactics apply as they also try to get Measure R (which was endorsed by the Green Party and Berkeley Citizens Action) defeated.
1. They used untruthful and misleading language in the ballot guide regarding the participation of the League of Women Voters in Measure S, as recently documented here: http://tinyurl.com/MeaSLies
2. Many of their campaign signs do not disclose who their funders are;
3. Berkeley residents have reported that signs are posted in illegal locations.
We encourage voters to vote No on S and Yes on R, based both on the content and the principle of these issues.
We ask that those who are responsible for maintaining fair elections in Berkeley do what is necessary to investigate these matters and require the Mayor and others to counteract any advantage that might have been gained by these maneuvers.
1. They used untruthful and misleading language in the ballot guide regarding the participation of the League of Women Voters in Measure S, as recently documented here: http://tinyurl.com/MeaSLies
2. Many of their campaign signs do not disclose who their funders are;
3. Berkeley residents have reported that signs are posted in illegal locations.
We encourage voters to vote No on S and Yes on R, based both on the content and the principle of these issues.
We ask that those who are responsible for maintaining fair elections in Berkeley do what is necessary to investigate these matters and require the Mayor and others to counteract any advantage that might have been gained by these maneuvers.
Why is this important?
I want Berkeley to be a model of good behavior in elections, and I want ballot measures to win or lose based on their merits. Instead Mayor Bates and others are resorting to unethical and illegal behavior regarding Measure R and Measure S.