California legislators have once again decided they know best. Instead of fixing our infrastructure, getting our debt under control, and making sure we weren’t the most welfare-friendly state in the union, they come up with another drug induced law called “CVRA,” the California voting rights act (signed into law in 2002). The law, in its simplest form (obviously crafted by the same people that wrote Obamacare,) says that because minorities seem to have a hard time getting elected in local races intervention is needed to make it an almost sure win.
The California legislators decided that because many cities and towns didn’t seem to reflect the demographics of the locals they needed to step in. Let me translate for you. Too many Republicans were winning seats in local elections and they needed to change that.
At this point, the law mostly ensures 2 things;
1.) Attorneys will get rich by simply writing a letter and forcing districts (that they have no real knowledge of) into district-based voting that doesn’t always work!, and
2.) That Chicago-style voting tactics are now legal in California.
In addition the CVRA proponents of the law also want election dates to be moved to the presidential election cycle. Why? Seems that a majority of Democrats can’t get off their butts to vote in primaries and local general elections. These are not my stats. This information comes from union sources and the California Secretary of State. The Dems have had control of both houses in California for many years, but local elections don’t always run on the state and federal election cycles and they’re having trouble getting people to come out to an additional vote. So instead of forcing people to be responsible citizens and rise to the occasion, they lower the bar.
Does anyone see a pattern here? No proof of citizenship. No proof of identity. What next? Will we send “non-citizens” around with ballots from door-to-door to collect votes? Seriously?
Let’s be clear. The CVRA is from that same “wise group” that has brought us so many bad bills. State laws courtesy of the loons up north, like:
AB131, the so-called Dream Act, which requires taxpayers to subsidize college costs for illegal immigrants even more than they do for some citizen students. My daughter, an American taxpaying citizen, can’t get the same rate if she moves back into the state. She would have to move to Mexico, renounce her American citizenship, become a Mexican citizen, and cross the border illegally in order to receive those subsidies! How much dope do you have to smoke to have that make sense?
Then there is AB506, a bill pushed by government employee unions to make it more difficult for municipalities to file for bankruptcy, and consequently more difficult to void costly contracts with public-employee unions. So even if the majority of the debt owed has to do with union-related dollars, the city can’t include union related items in a bankruptcy, and in some cases can’t even file. What part of “there is no money in the bucket” is not understood here?
Let’s get back to the CVRA.
There are over 75 cities in California, many with a majority of Democrat voters, that are run by elected Republicans. Democrats outnumber Republican voters by almost 2 to 1 in Los Angeles County alone and there are only 2 statewide seats held by Republicans. Yes Republicans hold close to half the 2,500 mayoral and city council seats in California, according to figures compiled by Grassroots Lab, a Sacramento research and political data firm. In the 2010 and 2012 federal election cycle, Republicans won more local seats than Democrats, and not just in rural or in traditionally conservative-leaning regions like the Central Valley.
We can’t have that! Even if the people want it! CVRA takes care of that. Now mind you, the voting process in California was well within the federal guidelines and was perfectly legal prior to CVRA. But darn those left-leaning voters who only come out in presidential elections!
CVRA takes voting from 1) “at-large” which simply means everyone in the affected area can vote for the best candidates for all positions. 2) “Division/Seat” voting, candidates are voted on based on a seat number so you can specifically vote for an individual to fill a specific seat or division, and changes it to “districts.” Under “district” the geographic region will be carved into districts where each candidate will have to live within that district to run for the seat and only voters who live in that district will vote for that seat. For communities accustomed to casting multiple votes for local boards and councils, moving to “districts” in most cases will mean that they will only be able to cast a ballot for one person per board or council, effectively limiting their voice in selecting local representatives.
The way the law is written it’s a no win situation. There is no defense or remedy for the government entities. You pay the attorney, move the election dates to the major federal cycle, and now you the voter gets to turn a 5 page ballot in to a 60 page ballot book because every school board, city council, town council, water board, and so on will have to be on that ballot. Good move Sacramento! This is a perfect example of a very bad law from very bad legislators.
CVRA proponents use this term “racially-polarized voting” saying it undercuts their ability to elect or influence the election of minority-preferred candidates. Really? So, let’s not fight to get the right candidates into office, let’s simply make it easier to win no matter what candidate runs for the seat as long as they are the right “race” or “protected class”? Again I say, really?!
Another accepted fix is “accumulative voting.” Yup, if I get to vote for 3 seats/districts on my ballot, I can give all 3 votes to one candidate. How’s that going to look on a ballot? Think about it. Didn’t Chicago have this issue with Daley? Didn’t he get like 157% of the vote at one election? And he joked about voting early and often.
Next time you see a veteran or a soldier and you don’t vote, go up and shake their hand, thank them for their service, and then tell them in honor of their service just can’t seem to find the time to vote.
Our Founding Fathers died for our rights. Some of them made the trip to the capital sick and dying to cast votes and get this country on a solid foundation. If you can’t make it out to vote, if you can’t get an absentee ballot and mail in your vote, then you’re spitting in the face of all those who came before and shed blood to give you this freedom, and that’s just shameful.
Say no to the CVRA, “California Voter Rip-Off Act”
