Occupy Oakland to Debate Mayoral Endorsement

Occupy Oakland to Debate Mayoral Endorsement.
Should Occupy Oakland endorse Dan Siegel, Einstein, or no one?
When: Sunday, Nov. 2, 2014, starting at 4:00 PM
Where: The amphitheater of Oscar Grant Plaza, Oakland, CA 94612
Why: Occupy Oakland has received two proposals for mayoral candidate endorsements. Quorum participation at the next General Assembly could proclaim the radical choice for Mayor.
Oakland, CA – Occupy Oakland organizers have received a proposal that OO endorse Dan Siegel for Mayor, which raises the question: should OO get involved in electoral politics by encouraging its members to vote for any creature – even if it’s our lovably outspoken canine comrade Einstein, who is also running in the Mayor’s race?

In response to the proposed endorsement of Dan Siegel, a member of the Committee to Elect Einstein has submitted a counter-proposal that Occupy Oakland could consider a write-in vote for Einstein as a vote against executive political power and for direct democracy. As Einstein’s platform states: “Without a fallible human in the Mayor’s Office, we must all play our parts in determining the route Oakland will take into the future. No longer will we ask what the City Government can do for us. Instead, we will see the way clear to changing the City ourselves, to expanding the power of residents of modest income, to shrinking the power of the rich by establishing a larger and more representative City Council. No longer will we have a single individual to blame for our problems. After all, how can a very good dog like Einstein cause social problems?”

Dan Siegel has provided a great deal of support for Occupy Oakland comrades and has fought long-and-hard for social justice, but this proposal of OO’s endorsement of his campaign for Mayor (not submitted by his campaign) calls for a discussion of the role Occupy Oakland can play in our City’s politics.

The two proposals below will be on the agenda of the Occupy Oakland General Assembly for Sunday, November 2, which will be held at Oscar Grant Plaza at 4:00PM. If a quorum of 70 people is reached, then either of these proposals could become OO resolutions. No matter what your feelings are about these proposed endorsements, your judgment will have an effect on whatever consensus is resolved.

The two endorsement proposals are not necessarily mutually exclusive. With Oakland’s Ranked Choice Voting System it is possible to write in Einstein AND vote for Dan Siegel (or someone else, or no one). Voters’ ballots will not be voided with a vote for Einstein; all choices will count.

To view the two proposals for Occupy Oakland resolution:
https://occupyoakland.org/2014/10/occupy-oakland-endorse-human-dog-one-mayor-ga-proposals/

Dan Siegel for Mayor:
http://siegelforoakland.org/

Einstein for Mayor:
http://einsteinforoakland.org/
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