How to Educate Yourself on the Candidates and Issues in Martinez

A little time and effort can go a long way in making the right choice in November

Thanks to everyone who took the time to read my first post and has subscribed. In the three days since I launched this newsletter, it already has over 100 subscribers!

As the newsletter gets started, a few housekeeping items on what you can expect and when:

• My goal is to publish new posts twice a week, ideally on Tuesdays or Wednesdays and Sundays, until Election Day. Of course, life may get in the way (like many of you, I have a full-time job and family and household responsibilities, but I’ll do my best to reward your interest by making this a personal priority).

• The newsletter will be much more effective and valuable if you the readers take an active role. I’m just one person with limited time and knowledge of what’s happening on the campaign trail, so feel free to offer your own thoughts and insights, ask questions, and offer suggestions for post topics. Ideally, I would like for this newsletter to become a conversation among the voters of Martinez about what we want from these candidates and for our city. Just please keep the discussions civil and respectful :-)

• As we move along, I hope to delve more deeply into the individual candidates and races, pose specific questions for them to answer on this platform, and analyze what they each have to offer as well as what they may be lacking (although those judgements are ultimately in the hands of each individual voter). Mainly, I want to give you food for thought and thoughts to munch on before you decide which box to mark. To start with, though, I will focus on how you can equip yourself with the tools and knowledge to vote your values and priorities.

So let’s get started. We all know the easy part when it comes to voting in campaigns. We drive by scores of candidate campaign signs each day (and they’ll only grow in the coming weeks). Soon, we’ll be peppered with mailers touting their backgrounds and visions. But we don’t have to let campaign ads dictate our choices. Here are a few things you can do to learn more about who these people are and what they would do if elected (or re-elected).

1. Watch the Film

Football and basketball fans know that when it comes to drafting players, the best tool teams have at their disposal is game film of athletes in action. When it comes to city politics, we have something similar: the government meeting. Three of the six candidates for Mayor (Mark Ross, Laura DeLaney and Brianne Zorn) currently sit on the City Council, so you can usually see them in action every other Wednesday, as well as a fourth council member (Debbie McKillop) running for re-election. Another candidate, Sean Trambley, sits on the Planning Commission, which also holds open meetings in which video recordings are posted online.

Now, I know your eyes may be glazing over at the thought of slogging through a three-hour City Council meeting, but there’s good news. You’ll be surprised at how much you can learn by spending as little as 15 minutes or 20 reviewing the video of a meeting from the city website and hearing what these elected officials have to say. It’s really a matter of identifying the highlights of the meeting most likely to give you insights into who they are and what they stand for.

You can find recordings of City Council and Planning Commission meetings here. My recommendation is to quickly review the agenda for the meeting in question and identify the two or three key issues that the council or commission will be discussing, or the topics that most interest you (focus on “general business items” or “public hearings” and skip over the “consent calendar,” which are generally routine items that are approved without debate, as well as presentations and proclamations). Scroll to that part of the meeting on the video (it may take a few minutes to locate it) and follow the discussion. Think of it like a three-hour recording on your DVR of the Oscars or Emmys; you’re going to want to fast forward through the minutiae to the important stuff.

A “business” agenda item will usually begin with a staff report from the city manager or another official, followed by questions and comments from the council members, public comment and then a vote if it’s an action item (as opposed to an item for discussion). For instance, a key topic at the last council meeting on Sept. 14 was the council deciding on its spending priority plan from the $9.16 million it is receiving from the American Rescue Plan. You can learn a lot by following how knowledgeable and incisive the council members are with their comments and questions.

If you have extra time, you may want to check out the “public comment” period on non-agenda items at the beginning of the meeting. This is where any individual can speak for a maximum of three minutes about any topic they wish, as long as it’s not on the agenda (public comment for agenda items is reserved for when those items come up during the meeting). By law, the council can’t act on or extensively discuss any topic that’s not on the agenda, but hearing what concerns and issues members of the public bring to their attention is valuable, because the council members can choose to agendize the topic at a future meeting and/or direct staff to look into the matter (they may also may briefly address the topics raised in their final comments and updates at the end of the meeting).

Of course, you can also attend a meeting in person or watch it on Zoom if you choose; the next meeting is this Wednesday, Sept. 21, and the agenda can be found here. The big item is a public hearing to discuss issuing bonds to finance the purchase of the Alhambra Highlands property, and I’m sure mayoral candidates Zorn, Ross and DeLaney will be sharing thoughts and questions on this topic.

I know it sounds like a lot, but after checking out a couple meetings, you’ll get a sense of where and when to find the juicy stuff, and the insights you gain will be far greater than anything you see on a yard sign.

What about those candidates who aren’t currently on the council or another government body? That’s obviously a bit trickier, but one thing to keep an eye out for is whether these challengers are attending meetings and speaking out on issues during public comment. Candidates trying to get themselves elected to office presumably are interested in what’s currently happening on the elected body they seek to join, and therefore should be expected to either be at the meetings commenting on the issues at hand, or otherwise weighing in through their campaigns on the decisions being made. If they’re not, that might be something to consider when deciding how to vote.

2. Follow The Money

We all know that those huge campaign signs and glossy mailers don’t pay for themselves. The money comes from somewhere, and candidates who spend over $2,000 on their campaign are required by law to disclose where. Campaign finance reports can provide important insights into which individuals and groups around town are financially backing particular candidates. It’s a good bet that their priorities and values align with the candidates they are backing, or vice versa; then it’s up to you to decide whether they align with yours as a voter.

Campaign finance reports are available through the City Clerk’s Office, and I plan to post figures in this newsletter when they become available. I’ve been frustrated that the city to date has not posted these basic election documents online for the public to access at an time, as the county elections office does with county elections through its campaign finance portal. As I did in 2020, I asked during public comment at the last council meeting that the city post these reports on the city website without requiring the public to request them. To date, I have gotten no indication that it will; if those of you reading this believe as I do that they should be accessible online, I encourage you to reach out to the city clerk and mayor to make your feelings known.

3. Contact the Candidates Directly

Most candidates readily provide email address and/or phone numbers on their campaign websites or candidate statements. Take them up on the offer. Put them on the spot about the issues and problems that matter most to them. Let them know about your own experiences, frustrations, hopes and goals for the city, and see whether they engage you on your terms with empathy and understanding, or rely on basic campaign talking points. Gauge whether they’re in this race for themselves or for you and the best interests of the city. There’s no better way to find out than getting to deal with them one on one.

That’s it for this post. Hope you find these thoughts and ideas valuable! Hope to be back this weekend with another post. As always, your feedback is welcome, and please share with others who may be interested and ask them to subscribe!