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County spends heavily on special election

July 16, 2010

The June 22 special primary election to determine who will fill the 15th District state Senate seat is expected to cost San Luis Obispo County between $450,000 and $500,000, according to estimates by county Clerk-Recorder Julie Rodewald. [Tribune]

Rodewald said her office found ways to reduce costs by consolidating precincts.

The 15th State Senate District runs from Santa Maria in the south to Santa Clara in the north. The expense for the five counties combined is in the millions of dollars.

Former Democratic Assemblyman John Laird and Sam Blakeslee, a Republican Assemblyman, are competing for the 15th District seat vacated by Abel Maldonado, who was appointed lieutenant governor. Blakeslee won the district primary June 22, but did not get the majority of votes needed to avert a runoff.

Two of the four primary candidates, Laird and independent Jim Fitzgerald, asked Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to consolidate one of the two special elections with the November general election. The governor rejected their request.

Blakeslee has said he will try to get the state to reimburse the counties for the cost of the special election.


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What if – Abel, Sam and Arnie paid the cost out of their own considerable wealth? After all, this was their little plot to plant Abel in the Lt Guv office (which he’s probably going to lose). Holding the election while Poly (and other) students are away for the Summer was the plan all along.


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“Holding the election while Poly (and other) students are away for the Summer was the plan all along”.


You are kidding about this statement right?? You can’t seriously believe that this was a plot to not count Poly?


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No, he’s not kidding. It is a long standing fact that holding elections/special meetings when a considerable proportion of the electorate is gone has a very real strategic value. Often students and professors are better informed than joe citizen and will turn out in numbers to vote that some politicians don’t like.


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Not only Poly, but UCSC and other schools along the Coast. Arnie, Sam and Abel may be despicable politicians, but they ain’t dumb.


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