Primary 2007

New faces for Pittsburgh City Council: Kraus, Dowd, Burgess

After all the grief back in March over the Peduto mayoral pullout, this morning looks a lot brighter for progressives than anyone had a right to expect.

Machine hacks (There is no machine!) Len Bodack and Jeff Koch were ousted by progressives Patrick Dowd and Bruce Kraus. As other blogs have noted, it was the Pedutoistas who really got behind both these candidates after they no longer had Bill to support. Additionally the much embattled Twanda Carlisle lost heavily to Rev. Ricky Burgess -- instantly lowering the embarrassment quotient on Council. (Now what about Motznik?!)

While County Chief Executive Dan Onorato won easily as expected, his challenger Rick Swartz made a really decent showing with 13.45% of the vote. Especially when you consider that latecomer Swartz ran his campaign on $5,000 vs. over a million collected for Onorato.

I spoke to Swartz Campaign Manager Joy Sabl last night and according to her figures, Rick received about 3 votes for every dollar spent and nearly half the flyers distributed resulted in a vote -- a really good grassroots effort. Rick also received loads of good coverage last night (much owing to PCNC waiting for Onorato and Ravenstahl to show up resulting in their relying on Rick's after party for visuals). Republican curmudgeon Bill Green was quite complimentary towards Rick's grassroots efforts. Likely because he recently ran himself and has discovered exactly how much "fun" it is to got out collecting petition signatures in the coldest month of the year. Most importantly, Onorato's victory speech contained not only a gracious nod to Swartz, but the recognition that voters really do care about public transit. That was a real victory not just for Swartz, but for the residents of Allegheny County.

We also saw a progressive win in the City Controller's race with Michael Lamb getting over 42% of the vote.

And Luke Ravenstahl? Yep, he won resoundingly. But for those of you who have been made to feel crazy by the "Give the kid a chance" contingent, it should be noted that you no longer need to feel like a lone voice in the wilderness. A full 14% of the voters chose not to "I Like Luke." In addition to the 4% who chose to write in someone, another 9% chose to leave their ballot blank for Mayor (38,665 voted citywide for Controller, but only 35,705 voted citywide for Mayor). Moreover, write-in Republican candidate Mark DeSantis received over three times the number of votes needed to get on the ballot in November so it looks like Luke will have to face a debate after all (hehehehe).

All in all, a nice night for those of us who believe that ACDC is the problem.

UPDATE: I want to make sure to note that while I mentioned Bram's assertion that the Peduto folks helped the Dowd and Kraus campaigns, from what I saw, both those camps had tight, really well run efforts and candidates who were on fire. Kudos to their campaigns!

On top of that, as Smitty has commented, Koch really disintegrated in the last two weeks with all his crazy shit. Also, both campaigns paid loads of attention to the Burghosphere which doesn't hurt.

.

Late Early Returns

The Burgh Report has been calling it for Bruce Kraus since right before 9:00 PM, and saying that Patrick Dowd may also squeek by.

Here's the numbers from the official County website:

MEMBER OF COUNCIL DISTRICT 3
(VOTE FOR NOT MORE THAN ) 1
(WITH 25 OF 42 Districts COUNTED 59.52%)
JEFFREY S KOCH. . . . . . . . . 898 42.38
BRUCE A KRAUS . . . . . . . . . 1,214 57.29
WRITE-IN. . . . . . . . . . . 7 .33

MEMBER OF COUNCIL DISTRICT 7
(VOTE FOR NOT MORE THAN ) 1
(WITH 22 OF 47 Districts COUNTED 46.81%)
LEN BODACK . . . . . . . . . . 1,338 51.15
PATRICK DOWD . . . . . . . . . 1,273 48.66
WRITE-IN. . . . . . . . . . . 5 .19
Total . . . . . . . . . 2,616

Another must read site is the Post-Gazette's Early Returns - live blogging!

I thought Dan Onorato's victory speech was quite gracious to challenger Rick Swartz. Dan claims he'll work with Rick in the future on public transit. If he actually does, it justifies Rick's entire campaign.

Sorry, but I don't have many kind things to say about Mayor Luke Ravenstah's victory speech. The P-G found him nervous, but my sis and I found him smug when he mentioned four times that he had won in March (The P-G seems to have heard, "You like me. You really, really like me," while we heard "Me, me, me, me").

Sounds about right for Pittsburgh

As I've mentioned here before, I designed the website for Rick Swartz, challenger to Dan Onorato in the primary race for Allegheny County Chief Executive, so it should come as no surprise that I disagree with the Post-Gazette's endorsement yesterday of Onorato.

I was already unhappy with Onorato as both a DINO and as someone who seems to have a real talent for arrogance (see here and here for the most recent examples), so I was happy to have someone else jump into the race if only to bring more attention to issues like public transit.

Additionally, Onorato also seems to be holding the strings to his puppet, Mayor Luke Ravenstahl. Ravenstahl has referred to Onorato as "The Boss" in a now infamous video. Ravenstahl of course has said he was joking, but many think that their relationship is not that funny and are uncomfortable with the vast amount of power that the County Chief Executive has as compared to the Mayor. (Then again, considering exactly who is our Mayor, he probably does need more minders than even the city budget has.)

At any rate, the last paragraph in the P-G's endorsement did give me real pause:

Rick Swartz has noble principles and a desire to engage more people in local decision-making. But Allegheny County is a metro hub with 1.2 million people, not a Vermont hamlet. He might make a responsive city councilman one day, but for county chief executive Democrats should stick with the name they know -- and nominate Dan Onorato.

Hmmm . . . Swartz "might make a responsive city councilman one day..."?!?

"might"?

"one day"?

As compared to whom?

Perhaps he only needs a few years inspecting roads or driving trucks in the Public Works Department to truly be qualified for a position on our City Council (see Motznik, Deasy, Koch). Of course, Rick's B.A and graduate-level study at Pitt’s School of Public and International Affairs and School of Social Work would be a real drawback.

Yeah, that sounds about right . . . for Pittsburgh.

Don't Reward Bad Behavior

A big part of what makes Pittsburgh "America's Most Leavable City" is the arrogance, hubris, and feelings of entitlement of its leaders. In a One Party Town where the local Democratic Committee makes endorsements in primary votes (Hey, kids, did you know that Dem parties in other towns don't necessarily do this and let the voters have a real voice?), far too many of our elected officials seem to believe that they do not need to play by the rules and that they do not need to be accountable to their constituency.

So you have a Mayor who plasters his face and name on every flat surface in town, crashes private parties in his quest for further celebrity, and only tells the truth when the MSM catches up to his lies.

You have County Chief Executive Dan Onorato who believes that elections only serve to "distract" the public.

You have City Councilman Len BoDUCK Bodack who refuses all debates and tells his supporters that his challenger is "trying to take the food out of my kids' mouths."

You have City Councilwoman Twanda Carlisle who spends tens of thousands of dollars on a worthless report written by her mother's live-in friend and is under suspicion of funneling tens of thousands more dollars into her own pockets via payouts and kickbacks.

And, now you have City Councilman Jeff Koch whose campaign created T-shirts that were the exact same color as Public Works Dept. shirts that ended up on the backs of Public Works employees during work hours and whose own Campaign Treasurer was one of the workers wearing the shirt. (Not to mention that Koch has a history of not listening to the wants and needs of his district to the point of "telling an 80-year-old woman to 'sit down and shut up.'" at a community meeting.)

Don't reward their bad behavior and arrogance!

Let them know that they serve us -- not the other way around.

Let them know on May 15th.

(Yes, you can still vote AGAINST Luke Ravenstahl. The new machines make it easy to write in a vote. Write in "William Peduto" or "Pierogie" or "None of the above!")

These are your public officials -- don't encourage them -- don't give them any more of a stage for their silly antics:


Create Your Own PaloozaHead - Visit Lollapalooza.com
http://www.writeinbillpeduto.com


Create Your Own PaloozaHead - Visit Lollapalooza.com
http://www.citizensforswartz.com


Create Your Own PaloozaHead - Visit Lollapalooza.com
http://dowdforpittsburgh.org


Create Your Own PaloozaHead - Visit Lollapalooza.com
Rev. Ricky Burgess


Create Your Own PaloozaHead - Visit Lollapalooza.com
http://www.brucekraus.net .

Dan Onorato's Magic Act

No doubt, this time of year candidates running for office are bombarded with candidate questionnaires from all manner of community groups and PACs. Some may finding it a bit of a distraction, but along with forums and debates, these questionnaires are a good tool to use when groups make their endorsements -- and these same candidates aren't shy when it comes to touting who has endorsed them.

Occasionally, for whatever reason, a candidate will choose not to respond to a questionnaire, and more rarely, a candidate may choose not to respond to a particular question in a questionnaire leaving it blank.

What I haven't heard of before is a candidate disappearing both question and answer in a returned questionnaire as if the question had never been asked (or in hopes that no one would notice that it had been...).

But that is exactly what current Allegheny County Chief Executive Dan Onorato has done with the questionnaire submitted to him by the Steel City Stonewall Democrats (SCSD), a politically active GLBT (and friends) group.

You can see their questionnaire and candidate answers at http://www.steel-city.org.

If you scroll about 1/4 down the page, you can see Onorato's answers and see that a few questions are followed by "CANDIDATE DID NOT ANSWER QUESTION."

These questions include:

Discuss your thoughts on marriage equality for same-sex couples; while the position you seek may not directly affect this issue, it is important for us to understand your perspective.

CANDIDATE DID NOT ANSWER QUESTION

Over the past decade, government money has been used to promote “abstinence-only-until marriage” programs in schools. Even though same-sex couples still cannot legally marry in Pennsylvania, to qualify for government support, schools must teach that any sexual relationships outside of marriage is “likely to have harmful psychological and physical effects.” Do you support or oppose abstinence-only-until-marriage curricula?

CANDIDATE DID NOT ANSWER QUESTION

Discuss your thoughts on government's role in shaping school curricula for sex education. Do you have any thoughts on the formation of gay-straight student alliances within the public school systems?

CANDIDATE DID NOT ANSWER QUESTION

Another equality issue confronting our country is the issue of abortion. Please discuss your position on abortion and any thoughts you have on the current abortion debate.

CANDIDATE DID NOT ANSWER QUESTION

I asked SCSD's Political Director about the missing answers and it was explained that Onorato had not simply left a blank space, but had deleted the questions themselves.

Yes, some of the most relevant questions to a GLBT group had been disappeared into thin air like some cheap trick in a magic act.

Some may find that presumptuous or arrogant, but then again, perhaps it's in keeping with someone who believes that elections themselves are nothing more than distractions (see here for full quote).

The Steel City Stonewall Democrats have tried to contact Onorato about the missing Q&A's but as of this writing, have yet to hear back from him.

Then again, perhaps I'm being too hard on Dan. I should stop and consider the culture that he's in.

It's a political culture where an elected public official (Len Bodack) can refuse all debates and be overheard complaining to his supporters that his opponent (Patrick Dowd) is "trying to steal the food from my kids' mouths." And, where another officeholder (Ravenstahl) made an art form out of avoiding debates and who is running on the legacy of his predecessor after having kicked out most of the staff of that same predecessor.

It is so very Pittsburgh.

It is so very sad.

Unless you hold them accountable.


(You can see Dan's opponent's answers here and learn more about Rick Swartz here).

Rick Swartz on NightTalk @ 8 Tonight

Rick Swartz, Democratic candidate for Allegheny County Chief Executive in the May primary, will be on PCNC's "NightTalk" Friday "Get to the Point" panel discussion this evening.

The show airs from 8:00 to 9:00 PM.

http://www.citizensforswartz.com

Funniest Easter Post from the Burghosphere

Those T&A dudes give us "Bunnorato."

Success: Rick Swartz will be on the ballot!

Challengers cry, "Uncle!"

As we mentioned here, Onorato's Boys challenged Rick's petitions. Here's the latest on this story from the Swartz Campaign:

About an hour before the court date, Rick Swartz's redoubtable lawyer, Chuck Pascal, got the news: he, and we, had disproved, countered, or otherwise de-fanged enough of their challenges. They threw in the towel.

Maybe it was the 92 year-old who wrote, "I have been living at this address since 1927."

Maybe it was the affidavit from Ben Woods (who is, indeed, a Democrat...).

Maybe it was the people we had ready to come in and testify.

Maybe they were just wasting our precious time from day 1.

We'll never know.

But, one way or another, Rick is on the ballot, and the campaign is moving forward.

Rick could definitely use a little bit of people's money (hint, hint...and yes, we're looking into ways to take web donations and stay within campaign finance rules...but don't let that stop you from mailing a small check, using the "issues coding" process).

And, Rick's website is up now (hot off the presses from yours truly):

www.citizensforswartz.com

Swartz fights to have his voice heard

From the Rick Swarz Campaign:

Candidate Rick Swartz Challenged for Place on Democratic Ballot

On Friday, March 30, in the courtroom of Judge Joseph M. James, beginning at 1:30 PM, Allegheny County Chief Executive candidate Richard P. Swartz (long-time director of the Bloomfield-Garfield Corporation) will have his day in court. Facing a team of lawyers from one of the most highly regarded and expensive law firms in the state, candidate Swartz intends to persevere with an all-volunteer staff and the help of his lawyer, Leechburg Mayor and current Armstrong County Judicial Candidate, Charles A. Pascal, Jr.

Last week, an unprecedented string of nominating petition challenges sidelined many would-be candidates, and sapped the time and resources of other local candidates such as Brenda Frazier and Patrick Dowd, who emerged victorious. Other prominent candidates have dropped out of contention at the city and county level.

Current chief executive Dan Onorato is praising the resulting absence of challengers: "Maybe the city's in a position to look for some security and let things settle down a bit...We don't have elections to distract us."

Is democracy a distraction? Richard King, defender of the democratic process, says, "Democracy is about open debate...Dan needs a challenger to pull him out of being too secure." Voting rights advocate Audrey Glickman, adds, "Perhaps [democracy] makes Mr. Onorato feel insecure, distracted, and subject to scrutiny because of his poor choice of a soon-to-be-obsolete voting system." Adds past Democratic ward chair Jonathan Robison, "We need to debate the proposed transit cuts and hold a referendum. This is a deeply inappropriate time to close down the primary process."

Candidate Swartz is determined to remain on the ballot, and his campaign will help Chief Executive Dan Onorato hear the messages he's not currently getting from his inner circle. To that end, Swartz asks supporters to code their contributions: donations ending in $.95 for people who are upset about the transit situation; donations ending in $.96 for people who are upset about the voting machine fiasco; $.97 for road and development decisions; $.98 if you feel the assessment issue has not been fixed; and $0.99 for people who generally support the democratic process and want the county executive to listen better on ALL issues.

Contacts:
Acting Campaign Manager Joy Sabl
CitizensForSwartz@gmail.com
Campaign contributions to Citizens for Swartz:
Treasurer Heisler
208 S. Pacific Ave, Pittsburgh PA 15224-1720
Website (under construction): http://www.citizensforswartz.com

Richard P. Swartz for County Executive: "A real Democrat listens."

Ironically, The Post-Gazette runs a story the very day that Danny O's Camp is in court to try to keep Swarz off the ballot telling how Danny feels about court cases that folks bring against him/his:

Allegheny County Chief Executive Dan Onorato complained about the courts meddling in county business yesterday after two recent rulings went against his office.

He called a news conference, he said, because he wanted to "express a little frustration in trying to govern and constantly having the judiciary block us as we try to deal with a home rule government."

Karma's a bitch!