Ali OTO

Endorsements

by Mark DiCamillo and Mervin Field, 2.11.98

Besides having to make voting decisions in this year’s Governor and U. S. Senator election races, there are six other partisan state constitutional office contests about which voters will have to decide.

These include Lt. Governor, State Attorney General, Secretary of State, Treasurer, Controller, and Insurance Commissioner.

A statewide Field Poll survey measured the name recognition and image appraisals of twenty candidates whose declaration to run for the six offices had been provided to the Secretary of State’s office, as of early last week. Results show that for the most part the candidates running for these offices are not very well known statewide.

Secretary of State Race

More voters are able to identify Democratic challenger Michela Alioto than her incumbent opponent Republican Bill Jones in the Secretary of State contest. While Alioto is known to 26% of the voters, her image profile (15% favorable vs. 11% unfavorable) is not as positive as is Jones’, whose favorable to unfavorable ratio is 15% to 4%.

by Tom Tuttle
Alameda Times-Star, 3.9.98

MICHELA ALIOTO remembers being discouraged by employees of San Francisco theaters from attending the latest blockbuster films because they were full and she was confined to a wheelchair.

“You learn to say ‘no’ to such efforts to restrict access to public facilities,” she says today. “You come to realize that things don’t come easily and you have to fight for them.”

When Alioto encountered such barriers as a teen-ager in the 1980s, the strong-willed paraplegic would sometimes gain admission “by claiming I had all these rights as an American, even though I didn’t.”

The Americans with Disabilities Act, which requires that public facilities be made accessible to the disabled, hadn’t been enacted then, and wouldn’t be for another decade. Even since the law was passed, it hasn’t always been followed.

As a UCLA student in 1990, Michela went to vote and found that being in a wheelchair made it impossible for her to use the voting booth. She called the registrar of voters and asked if there was another, accessible voting facility she could use.

“The woman said, ‘There is nothing I can do for you,’ recalls Michela.”

“I asked, ‘What should I do?’”

“She said, ‘Frankly, that’s not my problem. It’s your problem.’”

Last Friday, Michela Alioto, now 29, went to the courthouse in Napa County and filed papers making her a candidate for secretary of state, the chief election officer in California.

Her goal is to make voting “as simple as going to the market and buying a loaf of bread.”

“Even though ADA has been in effect most of this decade,” she says, “Not all voting places are accessible. I’m not so sure things have changed that much.”

Now one of the promising new faces in California politics, Alioto addresses a 7 p.m. Wednesday gathering of the Alameda Democratic Club. The meeting will be held in the Italian-American Hall, 2712 Encinal Ave., and is open to the public — “Even Republicans,” says Angie Watson, vice president of programs. Cheryl Hightower, a candidate for Alameda County superintendent of schools, also will speak.

Alioto is best remembered for seconding the nomination of her former boss, Vice President Al Gore, at the 1996 Democratic Convention. She is a member of the famous San Francisco family that produced one of the city’s most colorful mayors, Joseph L. Alioto; controversial city Supervisor Angela Alioto; and Michela’s father, Joseph M. Alioto, an anti-trust attorney who once sought to become governor.

Now a resident of St. Helena and part-owner of Amici Winery, Michela remains in touch with Gore. She first met him in the mid-1980s when her parents formed the American Paralysis Association. He showed an interest in the organization, now headed by actor Christopher Reeves, and Michela worked for his presidential campaign in 1988.

When the Clinton-Gore ticket was forged in 1992, she became its disability constituency coordinator.

She was part of the transition team after the election and joined the vice president’s domestic policy staff.

Michela returned to California and ran against Republican Congressman Frank Riggs in 1996, losing a close race.

Some observers thought she might seek that seat again since Riggs is running for the Senate, but instead she has chosen to try to unseat Republican Secretary of State Bill Jones.

She says it better serves her goal of opening doors and making California a better place.

“We have 19 million eligible voters,” she says. “Of those, we have 14 million who register to vote. Of the 14 million, 10 million actually vote. So only half the people eligible are voting. As the chief election officer for the state, I think the main goal is to increase voter participation.”

Disabled citizens aren’t the only Californians with restricted voting opportunities, says Alioto, singling out young people, the elderly, working mothers and mothers with newborns.

Possible turnout remedies

Motor voter registration, on-line registration and voting, and extension of permanent absentee ballot status to anyone who wants it, are possible remedies to falling voter turnout.

“As the computer and high-tech hub of the world, California should have pilot programs for online voting,” she says. “We should be using technology for voting. This is California for pete’s sake.”

She says voter fraud is the big issue for Jones, but focusing on it has come at the expense of voter participation.

“Obviously, we can’t have fraud,” Alioto says. “But when you have only 10 million of 20 million people voting, we should be encouraging people to vote, showing our young people they can be come part of the process.”

“In the past four years, voter registration has gone down 4 percent. That is a travesty when the main responsibility of your office is to make sure people vote. We need to be more pro-active and inclusive, not exclusionary.”

Says her age is an asset

She also says young Californians are underrepresented in government and that her age may be an asset rather than a liability.

Alioto was paralyzed in 1981 when a chair lift derailed at Heavenly Valley Ski Resort in South Lake Tahoe. She was 12 at the time. At age 17, she became the youngest person on President Reagan’s National Council on Disabilities Advisory Board. She also chaired a science and technology committee of the United States-Japan summit conferences on disabilities.

“Today I forget I have a disability,” she says. “The questions start coming up around campaign time.”

The oldest of four children, Michela says her parents taught them that we could do whatever we wanted to with our lives, but it is important to do something that gives back to the community.

One lesson Michela has learned from being disabled is “that society can close its doors on minorities. It is our responsibility to make sure it remains open.”

“Whatever avenues I have to take to do that, I’ll do,” she says. “Right now, it’s politics.”

by Jeremey D. Prillwitz
Capitol Weekly
April 6, 1998

California voters will be presented with a clear choice this year in the Secretary of State race. Incumbent Bill Jones has made reducing voter fraud and purging “deadwood” from the voter rolls his priorities. Michela Alioto’s goal, conversely, is to activate and inspire approximately 9 million eligible voters who are not currently voting.

“My goal is to make it easier to vote, and to increase participation within the political system,” Alioto remarks.

Alioto supported the motor voter law which allowed voter registation at DMV, and Jones opposed it. Alioto favors same-day registration, online registration, and various other measures designed to increase voter turnout. Jones disagrees.

Alioto, similar to former interim Secretary of State Tony Miller, also believes the office should be designated as nonpartisan, much like the Office of Superintendant of Public Instruction. Jones, conversely, has established a highly partisan record since taking office nearly four years ago.

“(Jones) wants a very segregated group showing up at the polls,” Alioto comments, referring to the incumbent’s tendency to fight voter fraud only when it involves Democratic constituencies such as the Latinos who voted for Loretta Sanchez in 1996.

Alioto points out that Jones thoroughly investigted the unsubstantiated claims of voter fraud in that case, while he backed off when Republican Assemblyman Scott Baugh was accused of gross violations of ethics in a successful 1995 recall election.

“I think we should have zero tolerance for voter fraud,” Alioto explains, “but we should also ensure that all those who are eligible to vote be enabled and encouraged to vote.”

Because of her personal experience with disabilities and her outreach to youths, Alioto has become intimately aware of the failures of California officials to encourage certain groups to vote. She says that many polling places are not accessble to people like herself who use wheelchairs, and many young people are not even aware that they become eligible to vote at age 18.

To alleviate the first problem, Alioto says that she would propose that California take necessary steps to ensure that all polling places be wheelchair-friendly.

Regarding the low awareness of young potential voters, Alioto proposes a statewide program to increase the interest of high school students in the political process. The program, Alioto suggests, could be modeled after the Presidential fitness contest which currently takes place annually.

“We need to be more proactive,” she contends. “When people are turning 18 there should be some type of outreach.”

According to Alioto, voter turnout is unacceptably low in California. “Of the 19 million eligible voters in California,” she notes, “14 million are registered to vote, and about 10 million actually vote. That leaves at least 9 million who are not voting, which is more than the population of entire states.”

Despite this crisis in voter participation, Alioto points out, the current Secretary of State hs employed “poll guards” and called for increased identification requirements before voting. “We’re supposed to be doing the opposite,” she declares. “This is America, not Communist China.”

The list of areas in which Alioto differs from Jones continues. During the Jones years, as reporters, researchers, and others know all too well, the Secretary of State’s office has not been one of the more efficient agencies in the California government.

One regular user of the office sums it up. “The Secretary of State is not user friendly,” the source comments. “If you don’tknow exactly what you need, you wonit get it.” Long lines, slow response to requests, and incomplete or poorly organized reports are widely-cited problems which have persisted throughout the Jones era.

Many Secretary of State regulars also question whether the agency will provide comprehensive Internet access to records in a timely manner, as promised.

Alioto says that making the office more user-friendly, in part through rapid transition to the Internet of all records, is one of her top priorities.

Reducing unnecessary bureaucracy is clearly linked to the process of making the office more user-friendly, Alioto explains. “The cost associated with bureaucracy is incredible,” she notes.

Few are better qualified to address the issue, because she spent two and a half years working with Vice President Al Gore in his reknowned “Reinventing Government” program. While serving as a transition liaison and policy advisor, Alioto learned that government can provide more services to the public if the process is streamlined.

“The Secretary of State’s office has been so bureaucratic, and it has not changed with the times,” Alioto says.

Her time in the Clinton administration was one of many learning experiences that has shaped her. Another was her 1996 Congressional race against ultra-conservative Frank Riggs.

In one of the more interesting and controversial rces that year, Riggs narrowly defeated Alioto after viciously attacking her in a barrage of paid media spots during the final weeks of the campaign.

“It’s a very humbling expereince to actually be out there campaigning,” she recalls. “I put 60,000 miles on my car in that camapign — we were everywhere.”

Onlookers attributed Alioto’s loss to everything from poor management, to low voter trunout, to unethical campaigning by Riggs. In one account, it was suggested that Alioto lacked the roots in the district which were necessary to gain the support of her constiuents.

Alioto disagrees with those who would contend that she ran a poor campaign. “We did run a very good campaign, and I learned a lot,” she remarks.

One thing that she learned is that negative campaigning can truly damage a candidate, and few limits exist as to what a candidate can say on an advertisement. “(Riggs’) ads were unbelieveable,” Alioto contends, “We need campaign ethics reform…because advertising needs to be accurate.”

A member of the famous San Francisco political family headed by her legendary grandfater Joe, Alioto has learned to respect the political process. “I was taught that politics is an honorable profession,” she notes. “I’m very proud of my family, and I have always realized how fortunate I was growing up in that setting.”

The positive name recognition she has developed as a member of a noteworthy family, and as an official in the Clinton Administration, has positioned Alioto as an extremely formidable challenger to Bill Jones. Recent polls show Alioto with higher name recognition than the incumbent, a rare occurence in politics.

The stark contrast between the philosophies of the two candidates should make for a highly substantive race. Alioto hopes that voters agree with her that inclusiveness and efficiency should be the priorities of the next Secretary of State.

“I am really struck by the amount of apathy I have seen among young people,” Alioto concludes. “By targeting the youth, I think I can make a difference in a positive way.”

By Dianne Berth
The Stockton Record
September 10, 1998

Two Democratic candidates for statewide office stumped in Stockton Wednesday, looking to sway some Central Valley conservative voters and raise campaign money from loyal supporters.

Michela Alioto, the 31-year-old scion of one of San Francisco�s most powerful, most popular Democratic families, a candidate for secretary of state, described her plans to improve voter turnout to a packed lunch meeting of the Stockton Rotary Club.

A few hours later, Democratic gubernatorial candidate Gray Davis was feted at a Morada fund-raiser where hundreds of Northern California prosecutors and San Juaquin County Democrats raised nearly $20,000 for his campaign.

Davis made law enforcement and education the focuses of his 15-minute speech.

“None of us in Sacramento can catch criminals. You do,” he said to prosecutors and other lawyers at the event. “I will try to give you the tools and resources and will listen to you. I understand our obligation to keep people safe.”

Davis referred to the 1989 fatal shootings of five children on the playground at Stockton�s Cleveland School. “I will enforce an assault-weapons ban,” he said.

Davis also said he hopes to reduce the fees students pay to attend state universities and to devote more money to primary education.

The fund raiser was sponsored by Prosecutors for Gray Davis, a broad coalition of 350 district attorneys, assistant district attorneys and deputy district attorneys. Among those who attended were San Francisco District Attorney Terrance Hallihan and numerous Bay Area and Central Valley prosecutors.

The fund-raiser was hosted by a group of San Joaquin deputy district attorneys who said Davis best represents their interests in prosecuting crime.

“He supports local government fighting crime,” San Joaquin County prosecutor N. Allen Sawyer said, adding that he swung his support toward Davis one night after prosecuting a difficult domestic-violence case.

Sawyer said he turned on the television and saw Davis� Republican opponent, Attorney General Dan Lungren, holding an emergency news conference on medicinal marijuana.

“It just seems like he didn�t have the right priority to me,” Sawyer said. “He�s wrapped up there in Sacramento. Davis seems less divisive and more likely to back us down here�He supports helping counties and local government fighting crime.”

The group�s support comes less than a month after a group of district attorneys blasted Davis for suggesting they had not invested enough resources in speeding the judicial process in criminal cases.

Earlier this week, Lungren charged that Davis, who is leading by 12 points in the most recent Field Poll, has been taking credit for tough criminal laws he didn�t write or even support.

Davis, who was chief of staff for Jerry Brown when Brown was governor, has worked to distance himself from Brown�s liberal agenda and campaigned hard on his record of backing the death penalty and the state�s three-strikes law.

“We know Dan Lungren thinks he has the lock on law enforcement, � but this event shows how much support Davis really has from the prosecutors,” said Jim Askew, a Stockton attorney and a member of the fund-raising committee.

“This event is not just Democrats. It�s the prosecutors supporting someone they think will do the best job,” he said

Earlier in the day Michela Alioto championed programs to make it easier for citizens to vote and to teach young people the importance of citizenship and political participation.

Of the 20 million Californians eligible to vote in the June primary election, 15 million were registered, and only 6 million actually cast ballots.

Those least likely to vote were young: Just 8 percent of citizens in their 20s voted, according to the secretary of state�s office.

“I think the message is a very clear one, Alioto said. “we are not doing what we need to do to invigorate and pull young people into the political process.”

She cited improvements in other states as examples California could follow. Alioto said she would consider vote-by-mail, a program that churned up the vote in Oregon; same-day registration and voting, a successful project in Wisconsin and Maine; and online voting, such as is offered military personnel in Florida.

“Technology is our invention. It belongs to California, and we can do more with it,” said Alioto, who two years ago waged an unsuccessful campaign for a Bay Area congressional seat after working on Vice President Al Gore�s domestic policy team.

Alioto may not win many votes from the Stockton Rotary, where a member joked that there were no more than two Democrats in the crowd and bragged about “being to the right of the Hun.”

But members said Alioto inspired the liveliest discussion they�d seen lately. After giving her presentation, Alioto asked for questions, suggesting the group turn the event into an open discussion.

“This is an opportunity for me to learn,” she said, “and I�d like to take it, to be frank.”

Many members said they supported her plan to review the way civics is taught in schools to foster better voter participation. “It seems to me there needs to be a much more serious focus on responsibilities of citizenship,” Stockton lawyer Chris Papas said, adding that he didn�t think Alioto won many votes from the crowd.

Several members questioned the need to try harder to get people to vote, suggesting it would result in more registered Democrats. Others wanted to hear her support voter identification, a Republican-backed plan.

The discussion lasted beyond the lunch, winning Alioto support from several members. “I think she got people involved in discussion, and discussion is what this country is all about,” former Stockton librarian Ursula Meyer said. “This club is very concerned with youths, and she got them talking about that.”

Businesswoman Kathryn Rousek didn�t say for whom she�ll vote Alioto or incumbent Bill Jones, but she said Alioto “was outstanding.”

Alioto, behind Jones by 6 percentage points in the latest Field Poll, released two weeks ago, is campaigning throughout the state during the next several weeks.

“Incumbent Secretary of State is the only person in California who thinks otherwise.” San Francisco—Yesterday’s primary had the second lowest turnout in recent California history, when calculated as the percentage of eligible voters who went to the polls. Of the approximately 20.5 million eligible voters in the state, a mere 5.6 million turned out to vote, for a turnout of 27%.

Despite these numbers, incumbent Secretary of State Bill Jones insisted that turnout was considerably higher (around 40%), based on his calculation of turnout compared to registered voters.

“The incumbent Secretary of State appears to be the only person in the State of California who thinks we had a high turnout yesterday,” Alioto said. “But rather than tell the public that only one in four eligible voters participated in the primary, Jones wants to hoodwink them into believing otherwise.”

Alioto’s statement referred to Jones’ comments in Monday’s San Francisco Examiner. Acknowledging that the major reason for the “increased” participation rate is statistical, Jones stated that he was employing “the psychology of the message” in order to lead people to believe that turnout is higher than more statistically reliable methods (San Francisco Examiner, June 1, 1998).

“Secretaries of State have historically been judged by their ability to involve people in the electoral process, and Jones’ attempt to statistically reinvent his record in office is dishonest,” Alioto said. “By the measure of voter turnout, Jones’ term in office has been a total failure.”

“Cutting people from registration roles is not the key to improving turnout,” Alioto continued. “That’s why, as Secretary of State, I will work to implement same-day registration, multi-day elections, extended voting hours, and the use the power of new information technologies to open up the political process to the nearly 15 million eligible voters who did not participate in yesterday’s election.”

San Francisco, CA—Speaker Newt Gingrich is to appear at a campaign kickoff for Secretary of State Bill Jones today, drawing comparisons between the two officials and shining a light on Jones’ assembly record, which, in some ways, is more extreme than that of the unpopular speaker.

Jones, who represented the Fresno area as a member of the California Assembly for 12 years before being elected Secretary of State, compiled a voting record that rivals that of the most extreme and conservative members of the assembly. Among the most notorious actions of Jones’ legislative career:

Democratic candidate for Secretary of State Michela Alioto noted the similarities between the records of the two legislators. “Gingrich and Jones are cut from the same political cloth,” Alioto said. “Gingrich is unpopular and viewed as an extremist because of his legislative record, and Jones’ views, as demonstrated by his voting record, put him out of step with the vast majority of Californians.”

“Some may have forgotten Bill Jones the legislator,” Alioto concluded. “I am here to remind them.”

San Francisco– Democratic candidate for California Secretary of State Michela Alioto today announced the findings of a statewide public opinion survey commissioned by her campaign.

The poll found that the race for Secretary of State is tied, with 29% supporting Alioto, 29% supporting the incumbent Bill Jones, and 42% of respondents undecided. However, support for Alioto was stronger, with 44% of her supporters stating they would “definitely” vote for her, while only 40% of Jones supporters responded similarly.

The poll also found that Alioto has a higher name identification than the incumbent. In fact, 69% of respondents stated that they had never heard of Bill Jones and a total of 85% of respondents indicated that they had either not heard of Jones or had no opinion of him.

“I am very pleased to be tied with the incumbent at this early juncture of the campaign, particularly in consideration of his 3� years in office,” Alioto said. “The usual advantages of incumbency are not working in his favor.”

“Californians overwhelmingly feel that it is time for a change from Republican leadership in Sacramento, and this sentiment is reflected in the findings of our poll,” Alioto continued.

The poll was conducted by Fairbank, Maslin, Maullin & Associates. 800 likely voters were surveyed between July 8-12. The margin of error of the findings is � 3.5%. In all ballot tests, candidates were identified by their ballot designations.

San Francisco– Democratic nominee for California Secretary of State Michela Alioto today sharply criticized Secretary of State Bill Jones for his decision to intentionally exclude vital information about judicial candidates from voter pamphlets.

Jones decided to omit two pieces of information about judges that have appeared in ballot pamphlets in previous election cycles. November’s ballot pamphlets will not include the name of the appointing governor, nor will it include the length of the justices’ term. A Jones spokeswoman said that the information was omitted from the voter pamphlet because “we want to be the impartial broker of information” (Associated Press, 8/5/98).

Alioto stated that she disagrees with the decision. “The Secretary of State has an obligation to provide voters with the information they need to cast an educated vote,” Alioto said. “The appointing governor and the length of judicial term are crucial pieces of information that voters need in order to make an informed choice on judgeships. It is not up to the Secretary of State to broker that information.”

“I am appalled that Jones decided to omit this information,” Alioto said. “It gives unfair advantage to incumbents and denies the public of their right to know. Whether the appointing governor was Wilson, Deukmejian, or Brown, it is up to the individual voter to decide if he or she wants to vote on that basis. Excluding the information is far from ‘impartial.’”

San Francisco, CA– In an open letter, Democratic nominee for Secretary of State Michela Alioto has written to Secretary of State Bill Jones asking that he fire the private investigator retained by his campaign. The request was made after The San Francisco Chronicle reported on August 7^th that Jones paid $4,000 to licensed private investigator Cathy Riggs.

Cathy Riggs’ private investigation techniques have attracted much attention and criticism. Roll Call reported in 1996 that Riggs was fired for contacting the ex-wife of Congressman Bernie Sanders and making inquiries of a personal nature. Congressional Quarterly quoted Riggs as saying “I’m very thorough. I do a total, complete package. Contacting an ex-wife is just something on my checklist.” The Santa Rosa Press Democrat reported that Riggs is known for approaching candidates with details of “past love affairs, the most intimate marriage details, [and] illegitimate children.”

In an open letter to Mr. Jones, the state’s chief elections officer, Alioto noted that the Code of Fair Campaign Practices of the California Elections Code (Section 20440), states that candidates shall not use or permit the use of character defamation, whispering campaigns, libel, slander, or scurrilous attacks on any candidate or his or her personal or family life. “By her own admission, this is exactly the type of investigation that Mrs. Riggs conducts,” Alioto wrote.

“I feel that as the state’s chief elections officer, the Secretary of State has a special obligation to conduct his or her own campaign in an honest and forthright manner,” Alioto wrote. “Retaining a private investigator such as Mrs. Riggs conflicts with your duties as Secretary of State, and I am deeply disappointed that you have decided to take your campaign down this path. I must respectfully ask that you terminate your working agreement with Mrs. Riggs.”

Secretary of State Jones has yet to respond to Alioto’s letter, which was sent to his campaign office on August 7.