As I gave him a hug and thanked him for his service and his efforts on behalf of my children and yours, I felt a man who was much relieved and also thankful for his community. Felton Williams at his victory party last night looked like he needed a good night’s sleep, but was already relaxing as early returns started coming in portending the rout that was happening in the polls. Very early on it was apparent he would be keeping his seat on the Long Beach Unified School District Board of Education.
Across town on Anaheim at Joe Jost’s, I imagine Jon Meyer was feeling similarly relieved and increasingly relaxed as he saw returns showing that his constituents had been turning out in an almost two-to-one margin over two candidates challenging for his seat on the school board. The margin of victory was sufficient to avoid a run-off, meaning he was through campaigning.
Between Williams’ party and Meyer’s, Dee Andrews and his supports were celebrating his three-to-one trouncing of the challenger to his Sixth District City Council seat. Yesterday was a day when the voters told the incumbents, “you are on the right path, please continue.” The word “mandate” is too frequently used by elected officials after they win elections, even when the win is by the slimmest of margins. The margins of victory yesterday for Williams, Meyer and Andrews certainly signified mandates.
With no challengers to the incumbents in the 2nd, 4th and 8th City Council Districts 2008 can be known as the year of the incumbents. By a rout.
Losers in the races are most notable the Teachers Association of Long Beach, which has pumped hundreds and hundreds of thousands of dollars into five school district elections since 2005 and won only one contested election (I do not count Michael Ellis’ election in this since his win occurred only because Suja Lowenthal pulled out of the race for school board in 2006). The voters have told TALB that control of the school board will rest with the voters, not with TALB leadership. Hopefully the rank and file teachers will recognize the folly of their leadership in squandering the union’s financial security and vote into positions of leadership individuals capable of pulling them out of their current difficulties and setting a strong vision for their future.
There was no music at Williams’ victory party on Tuesday night, but I think it would have been appropriate if the same tune had been playing at his party, at Meyer’s party and at Andrews’ party…you have all heard it, The Ventures, “Wipeout."
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Comments
PAUL said: IF LONG BEACH SCHOOLS ARE SO GREAT WHY ARE SO MANY PARENTS DOING EVERYTING POSSIBLE TO GET THEIR KIDS OUT. SOME ARE NOT GOOD AND EVEN BAD, AND THAT IS NOT ACCEPTABLE. NO EXCUSES.
Darwin Thorpe said: It is a real toot to see some use the term "mandate" for the recently concluded local elections. Mandate for what? Continue doing what? Test scores aren't that great, and Long Beach is reducing in size through no fault of the LBUSD.
It reminds me of the "mandate" of the recent special election to elect Ms Richardson to the 37th Congressional seat. Less than 8 percent of Long Beach citizens voted in that one. Mandate? I don't think so.
