It is time to turn in your absentee ballot for the November, 2016 General Election. Here is our Anaheim Voter Guide to help you sort through all the candidates – but first let’s go through our Anaheim City Council endorsements:
- Anaheim, District 1 – Denise Barnes
- Anaheim, District 3 – Dr. Jose F. Moreno
- Anaheim, District 4 – Arturo Ferreras
- Anaheim, District 5 – Donna Acevedo-Nelson
Please note that we do not endorse candidates who do not buy candidate statements. In our humble opinion a legitimate candidate must start by buying a candidate statement so that they may introduce themselves to all of the voters.
District 1 Candidates:
- Angel VanStark, Tax Assistant, No Statement
- Mark Richard Daniels, Community Volunteer, Statement
- Orlando Perez, Businessman/Realtor, No Statement
- Steven Chavez Lodge, Anaheim Commissioner/Businessman, Statement
- Leonard “Len” Lahtinen, Governing Board Member North O.C. Community College District, Statement
- Freddy Fitzgerald Carvajal, Insurance Broker, No Statement
- Denise Barnes, Anaheim Business Owner, Statement
The Curt Pringle cabal is backing Steve Chavez Lodge again. And once again we are taking a pass on the former SAPD policeman who left behind a sordid police record in Santa Ana. Click here to see all of Chavez Lodge’s endorsements, which include a who’s who of crooked Republicans, including Pringle, State Senator Janet Nguyen, OCDA Tony Rackauckas and Anaheim City Councilwoman Kris Murray.
Denise Barnes, like Chavez Lodge, is a Republican. She has the endorsement of the California Republican Assembly. She is not however tainted by the Pringle Cabal.
Leonard Lahtinen is currently elected to a college board. He is a Democrat but enjoys the endorsement of a few Republicans as well. We don’t like that he is endorsed by awful Anaheim City Councilman Jordan Brandman. That is not an endorsement we would have gone after. Click here to see all his endorsements. Lahtinen appears to be the consensus Democrat for District 1.
We noticed that Lahtinen does not have a Facebook page. That should tell you a lot. If elected he won’t likely be answering to the people but rather to the special interests funding his campaign. We prefer Barnes, who is a business owner. She is also endorsed by Mayor Tom Tait. She also supports quite a few local charities including the Maxwell PTA, Boy Scouts, WAND Council, First Baptist Church of Anaheim Homeless Outreach, American Legion, and Love Anaheim.
District 3 Candidates:
- Jennifer Rivera, Legal Assistant, No Statement
- Robert R. Nelson, Aircraft Mechanic/Businessman, Statement
- Linda Lobatos, Community Volunteer, No Statement
- Jose F. Moreno, Educator, Statement
- Jordan Brandman, Member of the Anaheim City Council, Statement
Robert R. Nelson is a Republican. In fact he is endorsed by the California Republican Assembly. He has plenty of civic experience as a City and School District Commissioner. Better yet – he is not a puppet of Curt Pringle.
The defacto incumbent in this race is Jordan Brandman – perhaps the most despicable elected Democrat in Southern California. Brandman consistently does as he is bid by Pringle and his masters in the Anaheim Resort District, including Disneyland.
If you want to vote for a Democrat, we like Jose F. Moreno, a former independent who has steadfastly opposed Brandman’s shenanigans. Moreno served two terms on the Anaheim City School District Board of Education from 2006-2014. He is a professor at Cal State Long Beach. He is endorsed by the Democratic Party of Orange County and by Anaheim Mayor Tom Tait. He has our endorsement too!
District 4 Candidates:
- Lucille Kring, Mayor Pro Tem, Statement
- Robert Williams, Emergency Medical Technician, No Statement
- Arturo Ferreras, Minister/Nonprofit Director, Statement
- Joe Moreno, Eligibility Technician/Father, No Statement
Finally a chance to rid the Anaheim City Council of Pringle hack Lucille Kring! She has consistently voted to give away millions to wealthy hotel developers and to Disneyland. Simply put – she is terrible and must go!
We really like Joe Moreno, a Republican Democrat who works for the County of Orange but as he did not buy a candidate’s statement we are going with Arturo Ferreras. (Moreno did ask us to remind our readers that he is the only Mexican American candidate running for District 4 – Ferreras is a Filipino).
Ferreras is a Democrat with plenty of labor and Democrat endorsements. He is also supported by Anaheim Mayor Tom Tait. Ferreras is a priest and he has worked with Native people and refugees at the border of Mexico and Guatemala. He has also worked to provide access to shelter and clean water to impoverished communities in Mexico, the Philippines, and all over the United States.
District 5 Candidates:
- Sandra Angel, Accounts Receivable Specialist, No Statement
- Donna Acevedo-Nelson, Property Manager, Statement
- Mark Lopez, Supervisor’s Deputy Chief, Statement
- Steve Faessel, Businessman/Anaheim Commissioner, Statement
Steve Faessel appears to be the Pringle candidate for District 5 as he is endorsed by awful politicians like Lucille Kring, Tom Daly, Kris Murray, etc. No thanks!
Mark Lopez appears to be the GOP standard-bearer for District 5. He has the support of Mayor Tom Tait, Councilmember James Vanderbilt and County Supervisor Shawn Nelson.
We like Donna Acevedo-Nelson, who has the support of the Democratic Party of Orange County. She lost her son when he was shot a few years ago by the Anaheim Police. She is also married to Orange Juice blogger Vern Nelson.
OC GOP Local Election Voter Guide – Click Here
Democratic Party of Orange County Voter Guide – Click Here
The Pringle cabal put Measure U on the ballot so as to prevent future Anaheim City Council Members from voting on new taxes. This is quite ironic given how often the Pringle cabal has supported the giveaway of millions of tax dollars to wealthy hotel developers and Disneyland.
Simply put, Measure U will require five City Council votes, rather than a simple majority, to put tax increases on the ballot. The newly reconfigured Anaheim City Council will have 7 members. It strikes us that garnering the support of 5 of 7 City Council members will be tough to do.
Supporters of Measure U include the Usual Suspects: the Anaheim Chamber of Commerce, Anaheim Neighborhood Association, Orange County Taxpayers, Association, Orange County Business Council, Association of California Cities-Orange County, Hispanic 100, and the Lincoln Club of Orange County.
While we generally oppose new taxes we also really dislike the Pringle cabal. No one stepped up to oppose this measure because, surprise, no one wants to look like they support new taxes.
We encourage a no vote on Measure U, out of principle, as we would rather see the new Anaheim City Council tackle this issue down the road rather than hand an election victory to the Pringle cabal.
Here our our recommendations for the California State Ballot Measures:
Proposition 51 – NO – School bonds
Proposition 52 – NO – State fees on hospitals
Proposition 53 – YES – Voting on revenue bonds
Proposition 54 – YES – Legislative transparency
Proposition 55 – NO – Income tax hike extension
Proposition 56 – NO – Cigarette tax increase
Proposition 57 – YES – Parole for non-violent felons
Proposition 58 – NO – Changes in bilingual education methods
Proposition 59 – No Position – Advisory vote on Citizens United repeal
Proposition 60 – NO – Condoms required for adult film actors
Proposition 61 – NO – State prescription drug purchases
Proposition 62 – YES – End the Death Penalty in California
Proposition 63 – NO – Extensive new gun control measures
Proposition 64 – NO – Adult Use of Marijuana Act (AUMA)
Proposition 65 – NO – Directs grocery bag money to wildlife fund
Proposition 66 – NO – Makes death penalty easier
Proposition 67 – NO – Grocery stores can’t provide plastic bags (referendum)
Click here to read the Libertarian Party of California’s Ballot Measure Voter Guide.
Click here to read the CA GOP’s Ballot Measure Voter Guide.
Click here to read the Democratic Party of California’s Ballot Measure Voter Guide.
