On June 7, local voters will have the opportunity to cast their votes for the presidential primary, congressional, state assembly and local Supervisorial District 1 offices as well as a proposed ballot box initiative. Please remember to vote if you are a registered voter.
Across the political spectrum, national pundits continue to identify American voters in both major parties as “sick and tired of establishment politicians” that no longer represent the will of the American people. As the general election draws closer in November, politics-as-usual has been turned upside down. So-called demagogues have emerged from the fringes of the Democrat and Republican parties utilizing populist political rhetoric to criticize, denigrate, re-brand and marginalize traditional party establishment ideologies and career politicians – regardless of credentials, experience and capabilities.
President Abraham Lincoln supposedly said: “You can fool all the people some of the time, and some of the people all the time, but you cannot fool all the people all the time.” This truism appears to be self-evident in American and international politics. Bullies, despots and dictators manifest themselves as emergent leaders of people by appearing as strong and unifying agents of change when, in fact, history has shown that despotic leaders are often ignorant, cowardly and subversive malcontents. Such leaders prey upon institutional biases and undereducated voters intolerant of diversity and capable only of appealing to ‘divide and conquer’ techniques that marginalize certain segments of the population in order to win elections.
At the local level, Measure P – the proposed half-cent sales tax with built-in community oversight and long-term prospects to improve local roads and create local jobs – has no organized opposition. But other issues distract from the merits of the ballot box initiative which has the overwhelming support of both the local Republican and Democratic parties as well as virtually every elected representative in San Benito County. Cynics ask: Can voters trust local government to deliver on its promises to repair roads through a ballot measure given the historical performance of the Gavilan College Board of Trustees, its administration and the poor performance demonstrated that left San Benito County residents without a promised community college campus or education center from the March 2004 voter approved Measure E facilities improvement bond?
With the advent of social media, local elected officials whom voters put into office to work together for the common public good have recently devolved into personal sniping or broadcasting insults. Again, this begs the question: can we trust local government to unify and collaborate on issues of critical importance even with spirited dissent and debate or do leaders follow the “divide and conquer” technique attempting to make their political profiles appear stronger by tearing down the ideas and integrity of other elected officials while hiding behind a series of Facebook posts?
Voters in San Benito County have a solemn and patriotic duty to deliberate on candidates for office and ballot-box initiatives that have the potential to raise funds through sales taxes to repair and maintain local roads; critical infrastructure we rely upon to sustain our local economy and improve traffic safety.
Please remember to vote next Tuesday, June 7 and let your voice be heard and your opinion accounted for by local, state and federal candidates seeking to represent you in this election year.