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Off Year
Because San Francisco runs its municipal elections on a weird schedule (mayor, DA, public defender, and sheriff the year before a presidential election; treasurer and a few other offices the year after), I voted today. Go me.
Of course, it wouldn't be an election without a few propositions in the mix, so we had a few of those as well, including a particularly annoying example of zoning-by-ballot-box. As a result, I find myself in the unusual position of supporting a well-funded developer who is opposed by organizations like the SF Democratic Party and the Sierra Club. Why? Because the developer got their approvals exactly like they were supposed to -- it's not the developer who's trying to take an end-run around the city planning process. This is one of my major beefs with San Francisco: we can't have a coherent, comprehensive city plan, because whenever someone either wants or doesn't want a project, it ends up on the ballot. So everything happens piecemeal, based on the whims of whoever can be bothered to come to the polls in that particular year. This is especially a problem in these off year elections. I cast my vote after work, around 6pm, and according to the counter on the ballot reading machine, I was only the 26th person to do so in my precinct. Off-year elections are decided by a tiny, tiny percentage of the voting public.
Anyway, my irritations with the California proposition system are many and well-documented, so I won't go off into the full rant today. ;) But it's democracy in action, for good and for ill.
Of course, it wouldn't be an election without a few propositions in the mix, so we had a few of those as well, including a particularly annoying example of zoning-by-ballot-box. As a result, I find myself in the unusual position of supporting a well-funded developer who is opposed by organizations like the SF Democratic Party and the Sierra Club. Why? Because the developer got their approvals exactly like they were supposed to -- it's not the developer who's trying to take an end-run around the city planning process. This is one of my major beefs with San Francisco: we can't have a coherent, comprehensive city plan, because whenever someone either wants or doesn't want a project, it ends up on the ballot. So everything happens piecemeal, based on the whims of whoever can be bothered to come to the polls in that particular year. This is especially a problem in these off year elections. I cast my vote after work, around 6pm, and according to the counter on the ballot reading machine, I was only the 26th person to do so in my precinct. Off-year elections are decided by a tiny, tiny percentage of the voting public.
Anyway, my irritations with the California proposition system are many and well-documented, so I won't go off into the full rant today. ;) But it's democracy in action, for good and for ill.
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Mail in voting seems to get much better turn out. Current turnout projections here are 51% statewide and 57% in the city (given the "heated" mayoral race between the progressive incumbent and the progressive challenger). I wonder if more states will adopt mail-in voting?
(voting is so simple that we never miss any opportunities, even during the really weird off-season ballots that arrive for primaries or at other absolutely bizarre, nonsensical times of the year.)