Minutes of the Special Meeting of the Oakley City Council held August 25, 2022
1.Opening Matters
1.1 Call to Order and Roll Call of the Oakley City Council Mayor Randy Pope called the Special Meeting to order at 6:30 pm in the Oakley City Council Chambers located at 3231 Main Street, Oakley, California. Vice Mayor Aaron Meadows and Councilmembers Anissa Williams, George Fuller and Sue Higgins were also in attendance.
1.2 Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag
Hadley Williams, 6th Grade Student at O’Hara Park Middle School, led the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag.
2.Public Comments
None.
3.Regular Calendar
3.1 Adopt a Resolution accepting the City Clerk's notice of facts and options available under California Elections Code Section 10229 that there are not more candidates than offices to be elected in District 4 for the November 8, 2022 General Municipal Election in the City of Oakley as there is one nominated candidate and one seat available in District 4, and either make an appointment of the nominated candidate or direct an election to be held in District 4 (Libby Vreonis, City Clerk)
City Clerk Libby Vreonis presented the staff report.
City Attorney Derek Cole commented that staff is not making a recommendation one way or the other.
Councilmember Williams mentioned the election has already been budgeted. She inquired if there would be any impact with the Mayoral rotation.
Mr. Cole explained the current rotation process was enacted during an at-large system and involves a tie-break system based on number of votes that may disadvantage candidates now that are in different districts. He recommended staff present the process to the successor Council in a work session for discussion of a different process than a tie-break system as it does not work for district-based elections.
Councilmember Williams mentioned the candidate who was short a signature wants to be a write-in candidate. She inquired how the process works for write-in candidates.
Mr. Cole explained that voters can write anyone in on the ballot, but they must be qualified, be a registered voter, and live in the same district for votes to count. He mentioned formal write-in candidates must follow the same process as qualified candidates regarding FPPC and other papers that must be filed.
Councilmember Williams mentioned write-in candidates cannot have a candidate statement.
Mr. Cole confirmed write-in candidates do not get the benefit of being on the campaign material, but they can self-advertise.
Councilmember Higgins inquired if holding the election will cost the City an additional $20k.
Mr. Cole explained the $20k is associated with District 4 so technically there would be a savings of $20k if the Council does not direct the election.
Councilmember Higgins mentioned a candidate obtained signatures, had an appointment, and tried to file Friday afternoon but City Hall was closed.
Mrs. Vreonis responded that the candidate did not have an appointment and she had not heard from the candidate as of 4 p.m. Friday afternoon. She mentioned she reached out to the candidate regarding filing and when they connected, the candidate indicated she had decided not to file.
Councilmember Fuller requested Mrs. Vreonis review the process and dates for being a write-in candidate.
Mrs. Vreonis explained write-in candidates are currently allowed for District 2 because the election is being held for that district. She indicated if the Council directs to hold an election for District 4, write-in candidates would be allowed for that district as well. She mentioned the write-in period begins September 12 and ends October
25. She explained the write-in period is very much like the nomination period in that write-in candidates must pull and file papers within the deadline, with the exception that the candidate statement form, candidate statement and ballot designation worksheet would not be filed as the write-in candidate will not appear on the ballot.
She further explained that the write-in candidate must qualify by obtaining a minimum number of 20 valid signatures on the write-in nomination paper.
Councilmember Fuller commented that interested write-in candidates should contact the City Clerk’s Office early on to make an appointment during the write-in period (September 12 through October 25).
Mrs. Vreonis commented it is better for write-in candidates to schedule earlier than later.
Councilmember Fuller asked Mrs. Vreonis to explain the process if a person signs a nomination paper on the Friday deadline and his/her/they voter registration card does not arrive to be processed until Wednesday of the following week, for example.
Mrs. Vreonis explained at the time a person is signing a nomination paper, they must be registered to vote and reside within the same district as the candidate they are signing for; if the person signs the nomination paper Friday afternoon and the registration card is not received until the following week, it is not going to count.
Mayor Pope inquired when the filing period opened.
Mrs. Vreonis responded it opened Monday, July 18 at 8 a.m.
Public Comment
An online public comment was submitted by Adam Gerhart explaining he was short 1 signature to qualify as a candidate for District 4. He requested the City Council consider allowing the democratic process to take place and allow write-in candidates rather than allowing a candidate to be placed on the City Council unopposed.
Councilmember Higgins commented she likes the idea of proving an opportunity for write-in candidates and when she was a candidate, she liked the idea of having her name and candidate statement on the ballot so that people knew what she was about, and she felt more fulfilled with that process.
Councilmember Williams expressed there is another level of validity and accountability to having a person’s name on the ballot. She mentioned Mrs. Shaw has done everything she was supposed to do, and people will have a choice if writein candidates are allowed. She mentioned she is in favor of having Mrs. Shaw’s name on the ballot as she put in the effort and time to qualify, and she hopes voters will see that commitment. She also mentioned the election is already budgeted.
Councilmember Fuller thanked the City Clerk’s Office for their work with elections and recalled when going through the process himself that they were very thorough and upfront about filing ahead of the deadline. He mentioned from an early age he was taught no one can take away your right to vote and believes that should apply here; District 4 should have the right to vote.
It was moved by Councilmember Fuller to adopt a resolution accepting the City Clerk’s Notice of Facts and Options and directing an election to be held in District 4.
Vice Mayor Meadows commented that everyone on the Council and 3 qualified candidates in this election followed directions and did things properly. He mentioned he read the candidate’s comments who missed qualifying by one vote and does not believe it was a technicality as he waited until the last minute to pull and file papers.
He questioned whether it is important to the candidate as he could not make it this evening due to another commitment and suggested the candidate should have put more effort into it. He mentioned he could go either way with the vote.
Mayor Pope shared he had two thoughts; one being that an election would provide the unqualified candidate another shot at the apple and why should he receive a special accommodation when Councilmembers and other candidates qualified by following the rules; the other being that write-in candidates are allowed for the other district. Mayor Pope questioned how passionate the candidate is about the election if he pulled two days before the deadline of the nomination period that was open for approximately one month and did not show tonight. He mentioned he does not feel like holding an election would be doing something special for this individual but rather providing the residents in District 4 the opportunity to vote.
Mayor Pope seconded the motion.
Councilmember Fuller commented that holding an election may provide a second bite at the apple for the candidate who did not qualify but it also allows a first bite at the apple for any other write-in candidates within District 4 and he would like to see that opportunity provided.
Councilmember Williams inquired if the qualified candidate for District 4 has had an opportunity to address whether she would like to have an election.
Mayor Pope mentioned she had an opportunity to speak during public comments. He added her answer either way may impact her candidacy.
Mayor Pope called for the vote. AYES: Fuller, Higgins, Meadows, Pope, Williams.
Motion was unanimous and so ordered. (5-0)
4.Adjourn
There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned at 6:57 p.m.
Respectfully Submitted,
Libby Vreonis
City Clerk