For the first time since 1972, an El Cerrito City Council election is unopposed. Two vacancies are being contested by two candidates--one of the incumbents, Janet Abelson, and Becca. As a result, the campaign season has been a little understated for us, and while we've attended a number of events, printed flyers and knocked on quite a few doors, the pressures of the thing are not what they would have been had we found ourselves in a dogfight.
The city is not without an election, though, as the Council has proposed to close a small structural budget deficit with a half-cent sales tax measure that would temporarily raise the total sales tax in the city to 10%. The measure is, in part, a response to the ongoing statewide budget crisis and the repeated raiding of local funds by legislators to balance the state budget. It is also an attempt to offset reduced property tax revenues following the decline in local property values. While there are no council signs up, the city is already plastered with "Yes on R" and "No on R" signs.
And today we received our ballots! Voting has begun.
(The happy candidate with her ballot.)
(The historic document itself!)
