Live Election Returns, Finding Your Polling Place & More

The presidential general election means a large voter turnout from the workingclass who hopefully will make a difference on the propositions, which is the best reason everyone who can should vote and we will all be watching the state and county propositions, and some local races.

The California Secretary of State will have live election returns on all California votes on the federal and state races and California propositions, both statewide, and sorted by County, starting at 8 p.m. on 11/2/04 and updated as the counties report them, which means we can expect San Mateo County to be one of the first, San Francisco somewhere in the middle and Los Angeles bringing up the rear, with its large workingclass vote. The very first returns are the absentee ballots (vote by mail) which were received before Election Day, and they tend to be more conservative. By 11 p.m., we will have serious results for all California counties.

San Francisco's election website, which will be necessary to view the County races and propositions, is:
http://www.sfgov.org/site/election_index.asp
I suspect the current election results will be at:
http://www.sfgov.org/site/election_index.asp?id=4436

With the ranked choice voting in the supervisors' races, we cannot predict how fast the San Francisco Election Department will come up with results.

For those of you who are inexperienced with national elections, remember that all politics are local and that whatever happens nationally should not prevent you from voting as we need your votes desperately in the California and County races. So, despite the fact that it is only 5 p.m. here when the polls close on the East Coast, and all kinds of predictions will be made about the presidential race at that time, WE STILL NEED YOU TO VOTE ON LOCAL ISSUES. If you want to change what is happening nationally, you must start by changing the politics locally. So, please, vote on November 2, 2004.

Your polling place is on the mailing label of our County Voter handbook and can be found at:
http://gispubweb.sfgov.org/website/pollingplace/index.htm

If you have not yet turned in your absentee ballot, you can deliver it to any polling place or to the Registrar of Voters at City Hall, Van Ness and McAllister, Basement on Van Ness side, between 7 a.m. and 8 p.m. on November 2, 2004.

If there is a problem at your polling place, you can always go to City Hall to vote.

If your name is not listed at your polling place but you are sure you are registered to vote, demand a provisional ballot.

Recomendations:

Steve Zeltzer for Supervisor, District 9, San Francisco
http://www.stevefor9.org

As a rule of thumb, this writer, like most socialists, opposes bonds, sales taxes, gambling, prisons, police, the death penalty and the military. We generally support taxing business and the rich. Instead of bonds, projects are best paid for by the progressive income tax, also known as tax the rich. The legislators need to be told to write bills to appropriate funds, that is our tax dollars, for your favorite projects.

The most important of the 15 propositions on the San Francisco ballot is PROPOSITION N, which is as follows:
Shall it be City policy to urge the United States government to withdraw all troops from Iraq and bring all military personnel in Iraq back to the United States?

The financial crisis at home is directly linked to the tax expenditure in this blood for oil war in Iraq. As one ballot argument states:
Since May 2003, Congress has appropriated over $150 billion. This war has cost the State of Califonria over $19 billion, and San Francisco $520 million.

San Francisco loves to claim it is "progressive," and for peace. The vote on this proposition will demonstrate just how true this is. Yes on N.

The most important of the 15 California propositions are:
Proposition 62-No
Proposition 64-No
Proposition 66-Yes
Proposition 72-Yes

Prop 62 would destroy all the small parties in California, such as Peace & Freedom Party, California's socialist electoral party, and the Green Party. It is very anti-democratic as it limits our choices on the ballot.
See http://www.Noon62.com

Proposition 64 limits our right to file lawsuits, in this case, unfair competition lawsuits. It is bad for consumers.
See http://www.NoonProp64.org or
http://www.electionwatchdog.org/

Proposition 66 limits the third offense in the horrifying prison-promoting three-strikes law to a violent offense. It will restore the concept of rehabilitation instead of punishment, which will save the taxpayers' money and build a much better society. This is not enough, but it is a start.
See: http://www.voteyeson66.org

Proposition 72 is a healthcare initiative that broadens the availability of healthcare coverage, at a time when millions of people have no healthcare coverage and that number is increasing daily.
See: http://www.YesonProp72.com

For more information on all the ballot propositions, read your California voter handbook and see:
The California Voter website at:
http://www.calvoter.org/voter/elections/2004/index.html

For more on Peace & Freedom Party's candidates, see
http://www.peaceandfreedom2004.org