Vote Me! Or You, That Is

As Congress meets to wrangle about the $700 billion bail out proposal from the Treasury to buy defaulted mortgages and other under performing assets that have been primarily responsible for seizing up the credit markets and restricting the flow of funds on Wall Street and throughout global markets, every member of the House of Representatives and about one-third of the members of the Senate are up for re-election.  Included in the list of those up for re-election is Rep. Laura Richardson (D) who represents me and many others in the 37^th Congressional District.  Ms. Richardson perhaps has some insight on the meetings Congress is having as she is, to my knowledge, the only member of Congress to lose a home to foreclosure—albeit a foreclosure that was later reversed by Washington Mutual in a transaction that almost never occurs, at least for non-voting members of Congress.

 

The disclosure of Richardson’s financial mismanagement and failure to make her mortgage and property tax payments occurred after her primary victory to be the Democratic nominee for the 37^th Congressional District.  There was no Republican primary for the seat as the District is so strongly gerrymandered to be a safe Democratic seat no one in the GOP felt it was worth the expense.  Following Richardson’s story becoming public several people have stepped forward to run against her, one candidate is petitioning to be placed on the ballot and at least three others have announced write-in campaigns. 

 

Having surveyed the landscape of alternatives other than Richardson to represent me in the House of Representatives I have concluded I am probably better off with any of my neighbors going to Washington and representing us.  And thus begins my campaign for my neighbors, for everyone in the 37^th Congressional District (and other races for that matter), to vote “ME” for Congress on November 4^th.  Not me “ME”, but you “ME.”  Write in yourself.  When you go into the voting booth instead of holding your nose and stamping your InkaVote ballot for the incumbent, or mulling over which alternative is less least desirable, just write in your own name for Congress.

 

Richardson is going to win this race anyway, first because she is the incumbent and that gives her a huge edge right away, second she is an incumbent in a District that is so overwhelming Democratic that Karl Rove could win an election in the area if he had a (D) next to his name.  Since Richardson is going to win the race why vote for her or one of her opponents?  If you are voting against Richardson you will just end up splitting your vote with everyone else voting against her so why not just vote for yourself, vote “ME.”

 

Vote “ME” and write in your own name as your form of protest vote.  People do it all the time.  In speaking to a representative at the Los Angeles County Registrar’s Office I was told there are some “Mickey Mouse” “Donald Duck” and “Snow White” write-ins every election for many different offices (Disney marketing appears to be winning the write in vote).  Instead of writing in Mickey or Donald or some other fictional character write in your own name.  Tell Richardson, tell your neighbors, tell the nation that you feel you can do a better job of representing yourself than the selection of candidates you have in front of you on November 4^th. 

 

Here is what I learned from the Registrar’s office.  Only qualified candidates will actually have their write-in votes counted; to be a qualified candidate an individual must file an official form between September 8^th and October 21^st and the form must contain more than forty and not more than sixty signatures; there is no filing fee. Without that form anyone whose name is written in will not have that vote for that race counted—it is the same as a “no vote” for that office.  If you choose to vote “ME” and write yourself in for the 37^th Congressional District your votes for every other candidate and measure on the ballot will be counted—as long as it is properly inked and/or you write in a qualified candidate’s name.  So by voting “ME” you are not invalidating your vote for President or Prop 8 or any other portion of the ballot, but your vote for that office which you write in your name as an unqualified write in candidate will not be counted for that race.

 

I am not a qualified candidate, nor do I want you to write my name in on your ballot, but like you and many of my neighbors I am dissatisfied with the options presented to me to earn a great salary, have terrific benefits, get a spiffy expensive car, and a pension as the Congressional Representative for the 37^th District of California.  If you feel the same way join me and write yourself in on your ballot.  If enough voters vote “ME” it will send quite a message.  If enough voters write themselves in for the office Long Beach voters will send a signal throughout the state and nation that the purpose of the House of Representatives is to represent the people of the United States, and by voting “ME” we are saying that we feel every American, you and me and our neighbors, can do the job and be a better representative of us than what we have before us.

 

One more time, I wish to re-iterate I am not asking or requesting anyone to write in my name, I am not a qualified write in candidate and I do not wish any more than my one write in vote—I am asking that you write in your own name, the “ME” is you and our fellow constituents in the 37^th Congressional District.

 

Vote “ME”.  Write yourself in at the top of your ballot on November 4^th for United States Congress 37^th District.

 

Los Angeles County Voter and Election information here.

 

 

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