By this time next week, I’ll be grabbing the list of candidates for our local elections and begin the journey of providing you with the best coverage of your local candidates that are running for office. I have been bombarded by candidates and the public for quite some time now with questions about this and thought it imperative to lay down some of our ground rules for coverage.
By this time next week, I’ll be grabbing the list of candidates for our local elections and begin the journey of providing you with the best coverage of your local candidates that are running for office. I have been bombarded by candidates and the public for quite some time now with questions about this and thought it imperative to lay down some of our ground rules for coverage.
First of all, our local city elections are top priority. With three open city council seats in El Cajon, a mayoral and council seat slated for Santee, mayoral and two council seats in Lemon Grove and two open council seats in La Mesa, this year’s election is already taking shape with many people running and many differences in what is a priority in each incorporated area. That being said, it is our policy to provide equal representation to each candidate for each office, whether it is two or 20. It is also important that you realize that in no way will I endorse any candidate over another. This is not my decision to make. It is yours. And I aim to cover agendas in each of these cities that are important to you.
But, in this column, I have no problem calling stupid when I see it.
As local debates begin, this is another venue where coverage can be expanded. So far, in the past, I have been able to provide coverage up to the congressional level, but with such a large demographic, giving the same coverage to all of our school and college board member seats and water district positions is nearly impossible. What many people do not realize is that when it comes to elections, this newspaper is a staff of one with the exception of debate coverage. That is not a cop out—it is just a fact.
So this is where you, the reader comes in. Debates are an essential part of the election process and there are many organizations that can be the lead in getting debates in these areas. If you do so, I will do my utmost to get them covered in a fair and unbiased manner. As a community paper, I depend on the community to provide me with the tools that I do not have at my disposal, and debates are a great way to get the coverage of the many offices that I am unable to tackle single handedly.
Also, when it comes to city coverage I want to know what is important to you. I can easily come up with a list of questions for each city for candidates to answer. But without your input it might not include what is important to you as a resident, businessperson, non-profit, environmentalist or the particular issues in your party of choice. So I am asking you, what is lacking in your city, what is being done right, and what is important to you in maintaining or increasing your quality of life in the place that you live, right down to your own neighborhood. I will do my best to provide incumbents and candidates with a worthy list of questions that can help you in deciding who is the best person to serve you over the next four years.
And let us not forget Propositions upcoming on each of your ballots. Your input there is as essential as the rest, as many of these affect everyone, whether it is with tax dollars, business practices, quality of life or all of the above. These items can go all the way to the state level.
So give me a call (619) 441-0400, or shoot me an e-mail at editor@eccalifornian.com with your questions that you have for you local candidates from city to congressional, and what Propositions you feel need attention. This election coverage should be about you and your quality of life, or lack of. It is my opinion that community engagement is essential and this election cycle I am asking you to engage with me to help you with the best election coverage I can provide.
