[Peace-discuss] Fw: Election Commission

[Regina Cassidy]

Tony Fabri is a hypocrite!

Fabri is actively involved in voter and candidate suppression.  He was
part of the faction attempting to keep third parties out of the coming
election.  He went so far as to send certified letters to the two U of I
students running as Greens for County Board warniing that their
candidacy threatened progressive change.  As Chair of the County Board
it is highly inappropriate for him to engage in this type of
intimidation.

These letters are a matter of public record since they were submitted
into evidence at hearings for Susan Rodgers and Zach Miller this
summer.

Additionally, the referendum for the Election Commission is worded in
such a way as to confuse voters.

This referendum would be a boost to the two-party duopoly (really
monopoly).

Any attempt at replacing an elected official with an appointed panel is
a step away from democracy


Gina

>>> "Randall Cotton" <recotton at earthlink.net> 10/22/2004 1:43:53 PM
>>>
Does anyone care to comment on the overture below by Tony Fabri?

I wasn't specifically aware of any current-day voter suppression due to
the
Champaign County Clerk's office. I've heard rumors, but nothing solid.
Perhaps I'm uninformed. Can anyone shed light on this?

Regardless, it seems to me that handing over election administration to
an
unelected, party-controlled commission may not be the best idea
(witness the
Federal Elections Commission, for example). I think I'm much more
comfortable with elections that are administered by an individual that
is
immediately accountable to voters rather than a commission of
unelected
political appointees.

All the arguments by Mr. Fabri below in favor of the commission seem
unconvincing and specious to me. I particularly point to the
oxymoronic
phrase "independent, bipartisan commission".

Other opinions?...

R

PS: For what it's worth, I personally like many things Shelden has done
-
the mailed voter guides, the electronic voter-registration kiosks, the
content-rich website champaigncountyclerk.com. These changes seem
rather,
well, *progressive*. But the individualized performance of a single
officeholder shouldn't necessarily enter into consideration of a major
change in government like this.

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Tony Fabri" <tonyfabri at hotmail.com>
To: <recotton at earthlink.net>; <grosser at itg.uiuc.edu>;
<wwmuelle at shout.net>;
<baanders at students.uiuc.edu>; <chyn at ojctech.com>; <cumpston at uiuc.edu>;
<danielle at onthejob.net>; <estherpatt at hotmail.com>;
<grosales at uiuc.edu>;
<SMITHJL at ci.champaign.il.us>; <tjwright at cooketech.net>;
<jlaesch11 at hotmail.com>; <dpkovacic at sbcglobal.net>;
<mpatten at prairienet.org>; <ramowatt at yahoo.com>
Sent: Friday, October 22, 2004 11:03 AM
Subject: Election Commission


: As you may know, Champaign County has a long and shameful history of
: election day voter suppression, particularly in African-American
: neighborhoods and on the University campus.  The problem is that the
: election authority for the county is an elected politician, and in
recent
: decades anyway, a Republican politician who sees these two groups as
being
: pro-Democrat.
:
: The November ballot will have a referendum question on whether to
create
an
: independent, bi-partisan Election Commission, which if passed would
take
on
: all election-related responsibilities of both the County Clerk and
the
: County Board.  All decisions of the Election Commission would be made
in
: open meetings, unlike our present system, where they are made behind
closed
: doors by an official who has now admitted to misusing public property
in
the
: Clerk's office to help run Republican campaigns.
:
: We are making a massive push this Sunday to get information out to
voters
in
: support of the Election Commission.  Please help us by passing along
the
: attached announcement to any progressive lists you may be aware of. 
Also,
: please consider spending a few hours on Sunday to help bring fair &
open
: elections to Champaign County!
:
: Thank you,
: Tony Fabri
:
: _________________________________________________________________
: FREE pop-up blocking with the new MSN Toolbar - get it now!
: http://toolbar.msn.click-url.com/go/onm00200415ave/direct/01/ 
:

WHAT:    "Lit Drop" to support "Yes" vote for Election Commission

WHEN:    This Sunday, Oct. 24, at 10 am and again at 2 pm

WHERE:  Meet at Democratic HQ, 14 E. Washington, downtown Champaign

WHY:       Every two years, Democrats have to fight our Republican
County
Clerk to make sure voters are properly registered and able to vote. 
Whether
you started working in campaigns in 1972, 1992, or even 2002, you've
probably witnessed examples where the Republican County Clerk has used
his
office to suppress the vote of African-Americans and students in this
community.  Meanwhile, the County Clerk's Office is misused to run
Republican campaigns, instead of fair and unbiased elections.  It's a
shameful record for our community.

We have a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to change that record on
November
2nd.  A ballot referendum question will ask Champaign County voters if
they
want to create a Board of Election Commissioners.  If passed, all
election
responsibilities of the County Clerk and of the County Board will be
combined under an independent, bipartisan commission.  Never again will
one
political party have complete control over the mechanics of our
elections.
Never again will we wonder what goes on behind closed doors, because
the
Election Commission will have to make all decisions in open meetings
with
the public watching.

Most of us have been so focused on electing Democratic candidates that
we've
not been able to mount much of a campaign in support of the Election
Commission.  (Despite having record voter registration and expecting
record
turnout in the upcoming election, Mark Shelden, on the other hand,
hasn't
been too busy to campaign against it.)  Now is the time to change
that.

We have literature supporting the Election Commission, but we don't
have
money available to mail out the thousands of flyers we need to get
out.
Instead, we're organizing a massive "lit drop" this Sunday, Oct. 24. 
We
need EVERYONE to help us get the word out effectively!

Whether you're a veteran campaigner or someone who's never worked in a
campaign before, now is the time to get involved!  In one day, you can
help
make the difference between victory and defeat for the Election
Commission.
Please take a few hours out of your Sunday to help bring fair and open
elections to Champaign County, and to end the political games once and
for
all.

We're meeting at 10am and again at 2pm on Sunday, Oct. 24 at
Democratic
Headquarters, 14 E. Washington, Champaign.  We'll have literature to
distribute, as well as maps and walklists for you to use.  Please
respond to
this e-mail, or call Dem HQ at 359-3760 to let us know which time you
are
available.

Thank you,
Tony Fabri


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