League of Women Voters of California Education Fund
	San Luis Obispo County, CA November 4, 2014 Election
	Measure J-14 Time of General Municipal Election City of Morro Bay Majority Approval Required Pass: 2464 / 76.38% Yes votes ...... 762 / 23.62% No votes See Also: Index of all Measures

Arguments For Measure J-14	Arguments Against Measure J-14
Voting YES on Measure J-14 will return Morro Bay to a single election in November. A general election in June, and another in November, was promoted as a way to encourage more candidates and elect by a clear majority. It has fallen short of its goal. In the last election, the field of candidates was smaller and elections were won by a clear majority in June for both City Council seats and Mayor. One unanticipated flaw in the two-election system is the six month waiting period when candidates elected by a clear majority in June must wait until December to take office as in 2012 and 2014. This six-month period disrupts city business, risks the loss of focus on critical projects, and may allow outgoing Councils to act contrary to the will of voters who elected candidates by a majority in June. It is unacceptable to have a Council not responsible to voters for that long. Under the two-election system, potential candidates face the prospect of running two campaigns in a single year while the city incurs the expense of two elections; doubling time and cost to both candidates and Morro Bay taxpayers. Most cities elect representatives in a single general election in November. Election data consistently shows that more citizens vote in November than in June and Morro Bay's historic voter turnout for November elections supports that by as much as 50%. Every city in San Luis Obispo County elects representatives in a single general November election when voter turnout is highest and so did Morro Bay for 42 years. It's time to end the 8 year experiment. Vote YES on Measure J-14 to return Morro Bay to a single general election in November with more candidates, lower cost and higher voter turnout. s/ Jamie Irons Mayor, City of Morro Bay s/ Christine Johnson Council Member, City of Morro Bay s/ Jack Smith Business Owner, Morro Bay s/ Marlys McPherson Community Volunteer s/ Amy Burton Community Volunteer Rebuttal to Arguments For Our current majority rule system allows for a wide field of candidates. The best candidates make it to the top and our officials have the backing of a majority of voters. Measure J-14 would fail on all counts. All our county, state, and federal representatives are elected using the Morro Bay June primary voting date followed by runoffs in November when required. Single-shot November elections, as proposed by J-14, are the exception. Contrary to proponent claims, we have fantastic voter involvement because of our primary system. Last June Morro Bay had the highest voter turnout of ALL California cities. J-14 would have you renounce that success. Though we had a smaller field of candidates last June, over several elections our majority rule system has produced many more candidates running for office than the J-14 system. Officials start full two or four year terms in November. If a new member gets a June majority they get a period of time to get up to speed before their full term begins. It's not a flaw, it's a benefit. Overwhelming citizen support brought us our current majority voting system. J-14 was NOT put on the ballot by a citizen petition. It was put there directly by incumbent office holders as an incumbent protection measure. Our majority rule election system is not built for the convenience of incumbents + it gives voters the power to have the better choices and leaders who are elected by majority vote. Keep your power. Vote NO on Measure J-14! s/ George Leage Councilmember s/ Nancy Johnson Councilmember s/ Grace E. Poletti Morro Bay Citizen s/ William H. Olson Morro Bay Citizen s/ James R. Hayes Citizen of Morro Bay	Your vote is your voice. Measure J-14 asks you to silence yourself in up to half of Morro Bay's elections. Worse, it completely eliminates requiring our officials to be elected by majority vote! J-14 replaces our current system MAJORITY vote requirement with "highest number of votes". Meaning that in a field of multiple candidates someone could be elected mayor or to council with far less than majority support. It means there will be backroom deals where good candidates will be discouraged from running so they won't "split the vote". Our current system allows anyone to take a shot at running + without backroom deals that cut down the choices you could have on your ballot. Our current system isn't unusual or experimental. It's identical to how we've elected our supervisors for decades. It's one of only two allowed election methods. Cities like Morro Bay can either have our current majority winner system or the old system of one-shot November elections where plurality (less than majority) winners are common. "Instant runoff" or "ranked voting" aren't authorized for general law cities like Morro Bay. Don't be fooled. It's not about cost. Elections occur every two years and when a council is elected by majority vote in June there is zero November election cost. The annualized cost of our current system is less than $5,000 per year against a total budget of $36,000,000. Isn't it worth a nickel per month to preserve your right to vote and elect candidates by majority vote? The council majority is spending $10,000 to put J-14 before you. Some officials think running for office is a distraction. Actually, elections are when officials really pay attention to voters. Your vote truly is your voice. Don't let Measure J-14 diminish your voice. Vote NO on Measure J-14! http://www.keepyourvote.org s/ Nancy E Johnson Councilmember s/ George Leage Councilmember s/ Grace E. Poletti Community Volunteer s/ William H. Olson Morro Bay Citizen Rebuttal to Arguments Against Commonsense says a single election in November is best for Morro Bay. The idea that J-14 completely eliminates majority vote is false. In the past two elections every office holder received a majority vote in a single election in June. The truth is that the June election silences the voices of citizens who vote only in November. Election data proves that far fewer citizens vote in June than in November, so we should maximize the number of voters who choose our Council with an election in November, just like all other cities in our county. The truth is June elections silence voters when candidates win by majority in June but cannot take office until December, creating a possible lame duck Council that's in charge of policy for up to six months. Your voice is silenced when a lame duck Council continues to lead the City possibly in a direction opposite from the voice of the voters. The truth is two elections cost more and could drag the community through nine months of campaigning from February to November only to restart campaign season merely fourteen months later. Taxpayers can't afford this wasted cost and time. Simply put: the two-election system was a lesson in election reform that didn't work. Measure J-14 simplifies the process with a single election in November that captures the largest number of voters making your voice louder and ensuring winning candidates take office quickly. Vote YES on Measure J-14. http://www.YesOnJ14.com s/ Gene Shelton Former Mayor and Councilman s/ Betty Forsythe Retired / Educator s/ Robert Fuller Davis Community Volunteer s/ Jamie L. Irons Mayor, City of Morro Bay s/ Christine Johnson Councilmember, City of Morro