Tucson Progressive candidate and proposition endorsements for Election Day

Here’s what you’ve all been waiting for– candidate and proposition endorsements by moi!

For the most part on the candidates, I’m keepin’ it local and not getting into the other legislative districts beyond mine.

For CD8, LD28.
I endorse Democrats + one independent.

Gabrielle Giffords for Congress. I have been calling Gabby’s office and asking for her vote on issues since she was in the Arizona Legislature. She is strong on public health, education, and women’s issues.

Steve Farley and Bruce Wheeler for Arizona House in LD28. Steve has been a voice of reason for many years in the Legislature, and God knows we could use more like him, which is why I also back Bruce.

Dave Ewoldt for Arizona Senate in LD28. This 4-way race for Senate really had me stumped for months. I could have filled out my mail-in ballot the day it arrived, but I couldn’t figure out what to do with this race. After hearing Dave in multiple interviews on the radio, I voted for him. There has been bad blood between Paula Aboud and Ted Downing for years– since she used smear-tactic robo calls against him. (I received them, so I know.) However, this doesn’t give him the right to use nasty ads against her. Greg Krino, the opportunistic Republican who jumped into this mess, is a Jesse Kelly-knock-off and would not appropriately represent this heavily Democratic district.

For statewide offices
I support the Democratic Party candidates. In a “throw the bums out” year– Arizona’s governor, statewide office holders, and Legislative extremists should be at the top of everyone’s list of who to toss out of office. Our state is fighting for the bottom in education and fighting for the top in every measure that points to bad management of the state: poverty, unemployment, budgetary insolvency, rates of incarceration, infant health, teen pregnancy, etc., etc.

Terry Goddard for Governor. We need an intelligent leader for governor — not a puppet who is controlled by lobbyists and beholden to the private prison industry. Terry would offer us some sanity and a firewall between the wacky state Legislature and the rest of us poor souls.

Chris Deschene for Secretary of State. Chris is an upright guy– a former Marine officer, an engineer, a lawyer, a small-businessman, and family man. He also is running against a puppet controlled by lobbyists. His opponent, the current appointed Secretary of State, also allowed Maricopa County Republicans to pick up homeless people from Mill Avenue and put them on the ballot as fake Green Party candidates. (There’s real voter fraud.)

Penny Kotterman for Superintendent of Public Instruction. This is one of the most crucial races for our state because it will shape the future of our children. Kotterman’s opponent has a history of voting against education in the Arizona Legislature for 18 years. He is one of the reasons we are at the bottom.

Felicia Rottelini for Attorney General. Felicia is a fireball of energy. She has run major legal departments and successfully tried one of the state’s most famous fraud cases in Arizona history. Her opponent, on the other hand, is barred from the Securities and Exchange Commission for committing fraud.

Andrei Cherny for State Treasurer. Andrei is another rising star– a former assistant Attorney General who has a background in economics. The current state treasurer has shown no leadership as our state has sunk further and further into debt.

On the propositions
The back of your ballot is FILLED with propositions– don’t forget to turn it over.

A quick-and-dirty way to look at this if you are a progressive is to vote “NO” on everything proposed by the Arizona Legislature. This would be “NO” all of the 100s and 300s, which is what I did. The 400s were put on the ballot by the City of Tucson (400, 401) and Tucson Unified School District (402). I reluctantly voted “yes” on the Core Tax (400) but “NO” on the other 2.

The only proposition that was put on the ballot by the people of Arizona is 203– medical marijuana. Vote “Hell, Yes!” on this one. It’s time to allow patients to use an affordable, natural product to reduce their pain and suffering related to chronic or terminal illness.

Three of the more heinous propositions are 106, 107, and 302
Props 106 and 107 were put on the ballot by outside groups with gobs of money.

Prop 106, Arizona’s Health Care Freedom Act, allows Arizona voters to opt out of nationwide healthcare reform. Funded almost entirely by special interest groups from outside of Arizona, this is one of those propositions that sounds good but isn’t. Arizonans voted this proposition down before, but the backers have enough money to try again. Here is an except from their website:

Arizona’s Health Care Freedom Act disrupts this theft of liberty and makes real health care reform possible – by ensuring that any solution begins not with appeasing industry, but by listening to patients.

Let me go on the record as someone who would have preferred single-payer, universal healthcare (oooooo…spooky…socialism!) This quote sounds like that, but it isn’t. Basically, when they say “health care freedom” they mean “you’re on your own” and no one is going to bail you out. Remember Sicko? Healthcare reform saves money, covers more people, and eliminates pre-existing conditions. Vote NO on 106!

Prop 107, Arizona Civil Rights Initiative is another one that sounds good but isn’t and is another one funded by special interest groups from outside of Arizona. Proposition 107 is the brainchild of white supremisist Ward Connerly. It would prohibit all programs that offer women, girls, and people of color equal opportunity in education, business contracting, and employment. Supporters of this measure have been shopping it around to different states; it has passed in some and failed in others. Connerly, who is from California, put it on the ballot first there. Since it passed, diversity among California’s college students has dropped dramatically. Vote NO on 107!

Prop 302, Arizona First Things First Program Repeal is an attempt by the Arizona Legislature to steal more money from Arizona children because they failed to balance the budget (despite Governor Brewer’s contention that they did). The First Things First Program benefits children and families and was created by a ballot initiative several years ago. It is fully funded by the tobacco tax. Since the Arizona Legislature refuses to make tough choices about Arizona’s eschewed tax system and wants to continue the trickle down economics welfare to the rich, they have to find money somewhere. Unfortunately, kids don’t vote, so they are a favorite target of the Arizona Legislature. Vote NO on 302 and keep one of the last pro-children programs left in Arizona.

The Tucson Weekly and the Pima County Democratic Party have issued their ballot endorsements. (Click on these links to find them.) For the most part, they agree, but the Weekly votes no on the city charter changes (Prop 401), and the Dems changed their minds last week and are now endorsing it. (Boo.)

VOTE! If you don’t know where to go to vote, check out the Pima County Recorder’s website. Don’t forget to bring picture identification that lists the address where you are registered. If you have a mailed paper ballot, fill it out and bring it to a polling place today– don’t mail it.