Election Official Threatens To Defy Special Election

[democracyindanger]

WOODLAND, Calif. -- With time running out, so is hope that a political powder keg lit by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger can be defused, KCRA 3's Kevin Riggs reported Monday.

Capitol insiders say it looks almost certain that California will face an expensive special election this fall, but at least one election official is threatening to defy the governor.


"I'm seriously considering, as an act of civil disobedience, as Election Officer of Yolo County, saying I won't run this election," said Yolo County Elections Officer Freddie Oakley (pictured, left). "If the consequence is that I have to go to jail, I hope the sheriff will make sure I have a nice roommate."


Oakley said her threat stems from cost, adding that Yolo County can't afford the $350,000 bill involved in the special election.

http://www.thekcrachannel.com/news/4391477/detail.html?subid=10100243

I just heard this tonight on the local news, but the story apparently was broken at the link on 4/18

[davidinalameda]

1. wow--this is impressive!

I always thought Yolo was sorta conservative

wonder if it's too soon to set up a defense fund for her

[Liberty Belle]

2. Yolo's not conservative.

The people there have always marched to a different drummer.
In the Reagan-Carter election, Yolo was the only county in the State that went for John Anderson, the third party candidate.

Good for this Registrar! Someone in Yolo, please nominate her for a "spine" award from the Backbone Campaign.

[robertarctor]

3. Think UC Davis

The three largest cities in Yolo County are Davis, home to the University of California and a very liberal town; Woodland, the county seat, which has a large Hispanic population; and West Sacramento, which is a suburb of Sacramento directly across the river from downtown Sacramento.

Good for that lady. I hope she sticks to her guns, metaphorically speaking.

[davidinalameda]

4. I knew Davis was in Yolo

but I guess I thought the rest of Yolo was like the rest of the Sacramento burbs

[robertarctor]

5. Most of Sacramento's wingnuts live east of town

... in Placer County (which passed up Orange County as California's most reliably Republican stronghold), El Dorado County and eastern Sacramento County.

And we do have our share of wingnuts. This is where former lunar-rotation disc jockey Jeff Christie refashioned himself as a right-wing talker named Rush Limbaugh for four years, before he went national.

But there are a lot of progressives in the state capital, too.