10:00am | According to Webster, the primary definition of ‘democracy’ is “government by the people; especially: rule of the majority.” In last night’s election, the turn-out was nothing more than an embarrassment. In Long Beach, only 30% of residents bother to register in the first place. There were a total of 17,057 ballots cast. Nearly 70% of them were Vote-By-Mail ballots. To be fair, the ballots cast represent 3 of 9 Council districts, 11.3% of the total registered voters for the City, but only 3.4% of the total population.
In the 2010 election, which included the mayoral campaign, 40,292 votes were cast, which is 8% of the total population. Whether 3.4% or 8%, there is no way this small minority of residents can accurately or fairly represent the values of the rest.
As our newly elected, or re-elected, council representatives bask in their respective victories, I hope that they remember that, in winning, they’ve exemplified a complete and utter failure of Democracy in Long Beach.