Orange County’s very own ECCO, The Elections Committee of the County of Orange, a prominent non-partisan voice since 1982 recently announced their endorsements. Among them are the ballot initiatives.
PROPOSITIONS
1A Safe, Reliable High-Speed Passenger Train Bonds: Yes
2 Standards for Confining Farm Animals: Yes
3 Children’s Hospital Bond Act: Yes
4 Waiting Period and Parental Notification Before Termination of Minor’s Pregnancy: No
5 Nonviolent Drug Offenses, Sentencing, Parole, and Rehabilitation: Yes
6 Police and Law Enforcement Funding. Criminal Penalties and Laws: No
7 Renewable Energy Generation: No
8 Eliminates Right of Same-Sex Couples to Marry: No
9 Criminal Justice System. Victims’ Rights. Parole.: No
10 Alternative Fuel Vehicles and Renewable Energy Bonds: No
11 Redistricting: No
12 Veteran’s Bond Act of 2008: Yes
Also among the endorsements are city council races
O.C. CITY COUNCILS
Anaheim
Lorri Galloway: Endorsed
Kostas “Gus” Roditis: Acceptable
Gail Eastman: Acceptable
Harry Sidhu: Unacceptable
Buena Park
Greg Ferguson: Acceptable
Costa Mesa
Katrina Foley: Endorsed
Lisa Reedy: Acceptable
Eric Bever: Unacceptable
Jim Righeimer: Unacceptable
Gary Monahan: Unacceptable
Dana Point
Lara Anderson: Acceptable
Lou Penrose: Unacceptable
Fountain Valley
Gus Ayer: Endorsed
Fullerton
Karen Haluza: Endorsed
Sharon Quirk: Endorsed
Shawn Nelson: Unacceptable
Garden Grove-Mayor
Karentracy Moreland Urda: Unacceptable
Garden Grove
Robin Peace Marcario: Endorsed
Paul Lucas: Endorsed
Linh Ho: Endorsed
Trung Nguyen: Unacceptable
Tony Flores: Unacceptable
Steve Jones: Unacceptable
Huntington Beach
Dan Kalmick: Endorsed
Keith Bohr: Endorsed
Don Hansen: Unacceptable
Devin Dwyer: Unacceptable
Irvine-Mayor
Sukhee Kang: Endorsed
Christina L. Shea: Unacceptable
Irvine
Larry Agran: Endorsed
Beth Krom: Endorsed
Todd Gallinger: Endorsed
Bea Foster: Acceptable
Paris Merriam: Unacceptable
Steven S. Choi: Unacceptable
Laguna Beach
Jane Egly: Endorsed
Verna Rollinger: Endorsed
Cheryl Kinsman: Unacceptable
Laguna Woods
Arlene Sontag: Endorsed
La Habra
Rose Espinoza: Endorsed
Daren Nigsarian: Acceptable
Tim Shaw: Unacceptable
Tom Beamish: Unacceptable
La Palma
Steve Shanahan: Endorsed
Mission Viejo
Frank Ury: Unacceptable
Orange
Teresa “Tita” Smith: Acceptable
Jon Dumitru: Unacceptable
Rossmoor
Susan Rehman: Acceptable
San Clemente
Steve Knoblock: Unacceptable
San Juan Capistrano
Laura Freese: Endorsed
Sargio Farias: Endorsed
Joe Soto: Unacceptable
Santa Ana-Mayor
Michele Martinez: Endorsed
Stanley Fiala: Unacceptable
Santa Ana 1
Vincent F. Sarmiento: Endorsed
Santa Ana 3
Arturo “Art” Pedroza: Endorsed
Carlos Bustamante: Unacceptable
Steve Rocco: Unacceptable
Santa Ana 5
Claudia Alvarez: Acceptable
Stanton
Kevin F. Carr, Jr.: Acceptable
Westminster
Penny Loomer: Acceptable
For the full roster of endorsements, follow this link
This is really a non-partisan group, Bill? I mean, I agree with most of it, but it looks like 95% Democrats endorsed, 95% of Republicans “unacceptable.” (Art managing to squeeze in an endorsement)
It attests to the Republican Party being too far to the right of the mainstream. If there was a Republican running for office who is opposed to Prop 8, s/he did not come forward and take a stand.
Glad you asked, Vern. ECCO’s official tag line: The Elections Committee of the County of Orange (ECCO) is a non-partisan GLBT, HIV/AIDS, and Women’s Political Cation Committee serving O.C. and Long Beach.
ECCO’s endorsements are determined by the Political Affairs Committee after candidates for election and re-election complete exhaustive questionnaires and are interviewed. Should a candidate decline to participate in ECCO’s process, an endorsement is somewhere between highly unlikely and impossible. Few entities employ a process as rigorous as ECCO’s.
It is a coincidence that most endorsements go to Democrats. I must hasten to add that ECCO does make special effort to locate and identify Republicans who support ECCO’s issues. That there are so few speaks not to ECCO’s perspective.
Full disclosure: I was recently elected to their Board of Directors and I did not participate in the endorsement process as it had been concluded prior to my involvement.
ECCO also monitors the voting records of officials in Sacramento. A grid displaying the vote on GLBT issues can be found on the ECCO web site (http://www.eccopac.org/2008/10/california-glbt-legislative-results.html). It’s hard to run from one’s record.