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Update: Mendo Measure B Election Results Not Final!!!
email received weds at approx 6:33pm
MENDOCINO MEASURE B VOTE COUNT NOT COMPLETE
Measure B Vote Lead Diminishing With 11,000 votes to count
Release by Mendocino No on Measure B Committee - Jun 4, 5PM:
The Mendocino No on Measure B Committee
(http://nomeasureb.org) is happy to announce that a substantial
number of votes remain to be counted in last night's election,
throwing the outcome in doubt.
The margin for Measure B, initially reported to be 56%, has
shrunk to just 52% with 16,285 votes recorded. According to the voter
registrar's office (Jun4, 4 PM) there remain to be counted another
10,835 walk-in absentees and 439 provisional ballots, enough to erase
B's 700-vote margin. Being late-arriving and weighted toward
districts that favor our side, there is a good chance these votes
could alter the balance towards "No."
The No on B Committee stands hopeful that Measure B will be
defeated in the final count. In any case, we are proud of our
strong showing against opponents who had expected to trounce us.
We faced powerful opposition from the Board of Supervisors, the
county's leading newspapers and media, the City Councils of Ukiah
and Willits, the sheriff, the DA, and local business interests upset
about competing with the high wages paid to workers in the marijuana
industry. Our campaign started out far behind in organization
and trailed in funding. The election was deliberately scheduled by
the Board of Supervisors for a low-turnout June primary ballot,
where older, more conservative voters predominate Had the
election been in November instead, we most likely would have won.
In the meantime, the outcome of this election remains in doubt.
The registrar has given no indication when further vote totals will
be available, but has 28 days to certify final results.
We are gratified that so many Mendocinans agreed with us that
Measure B is a "Bad prescription" for the county's real problems with
large-scale, commercial marijuana growing. We stand ready to offer
more thoughtful, productive proposals.
- Dale Gieringer, No on Measure B http://wwwnomeasureb.org
Measure B Vote Lead Diminishing With 11,000 votes to count
Release by Mendocino No on Measure B Committee - Jun 4, 5PM:
The Mendocino No on Measure B Committee
(http://nomeasureb.org) is happy to announce that a substantial
number of votes remain to be counted in last night's election,
throwing the outcome in doubt.
The margin for Measure B, initially reported to be 56%, has
shrunk to just 52% with 16,285 votes recorded. According to the voter
registrar's office (Jun4, 4 PM) there remain to be counted another
10,835 walk-in absentees and 439 provisional ballots, enough to erase
B's 700-vote margin. Being late-arriving and weighted toward
districts that favor our side, there is a good chance these votes
could alter the balance towards "No."
The No on B Committee stands hopeful that Measure B will be
defeated in the final count. In any case, we are proud of our
strong showing against opponents who had expected to trounce us.
We faced powerful opposition from the Board of Supervisors, the
county's leading newspapers and media, the City Councils of Ukiah
and Willits, the sheriff, the DA, and local business interests upset
about competing with the high wages paid to workers in the marijuana
industry. Our campaign started out far behind in organization
and trailed in funding. The election was deliberately scheduled by
the Board of Supervisors for a low-turnout June primary ballot,
where older, more conservative voters predominate Had the
election been in November instead, we most likely would have won.
In the meantime, the outcome of this election remains in doubt.
The registrar has given no indication when further vote totals will
be available, but has 28 days to certify final results.
We are gratified that so many Mendocinans agreed with us that
Measure B is a "Bad prescription" for the county's real problems with
large-scale, commercial marijuana growing. We stand ready to offer
more thoughtful, productive proposals.
- Dale Gieringer, No on Measure B http://wwwnomeasureb.org
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The American Medical Marijuana Association
Wednesday, June 4, 2008
AMMA calls for a new initiative for Mendocino
by Steve Kubby, AMMA Director
MENDOCINO, CA -- The passage of Measure B has generated widespread
news coverage across the US. A lot of people are looking to the what
happens in this haven for cannabis cultivation, as some sort of a
national response to the increasing public acceptance of medical
marijuana.
With this in mind, the American Medical Marijuana Association is
calling for a new initiative for the local Mendocino November Ballot
to provide urgently needed protection for the rights of patients,
caregivers and cooperatives to use and cultivation cannabis for
medical purposes. In particular, the new initiative needs to have a
civilian review board to oversee the operations of what appears to be
rogue officers and officials in Mendocino, who hate medical marijuana
and those who use it.
Furthermore, to protect sick, disabled and dying patients, we believe
it is absolutely necessary to legalize personal use and cultivation as
well, since police, prosecutors and judges seem hopelessly unable to
distinguish between medical and non-medical situations.
Meanwhile, Mendocino law enforcement can now be expected to engage in
a frenzy of raids and arrests, while the District Attorney's office
will be just as enthusiastic about prosecuting felonies against any
patient with 7 plants or more. We predict this will be a wake up call
for the voters and they will be ready to support a return to the
Measure G protection of their rights.
The key to understanding why a new initiative is necessary and
desirable is because Measure B passed with a mere 8,493 votes, while
Measure G passed in 2000 with approximately 20,000 votes. That's
because half as many people voted in this June election as in the
November 2000 election.
Since Mendocino is a traditionally Democratic stronghold, it seems
reasonable to conclude that the November 2008 election will again see
twice as many voters. We believe that those voters, after being
harassed by law enforcement this summer, will be far more like to
approve a new initiative to overturn Measure B and reinstate a
modified Measure G type initiative.
MEASURE B-Vote Analysis
Total Votes for June 3, 2008 Election:
16,285
YES on B
8493
52.15%
NO on B
7792
47.85%
Difference between Yes and No vote
701 votes.
===========
Total Votes for November 7, 2000 Election:
34,953
YES on G
58%
NO on G
42%
###
Wednesday, June 4, 2008
AMMA calls for a new initiative for Mendocino
by Steve Kubby, AMMA Director
MENDOCINO, CA -- The passage of Measure B has generated widespread
news coverage across the US. A lot of people are looking to the what
happens in this haven for cannabis cultivation, as some sort of a
national response to the increasing public acceptance of medical
marijuana.
With this in mind, the American Medical Marijuana Association is
calling for a new initiative for the local Mendocino November Ballot
to provide urgently needed protection for the rights of patients,
caregivers and cooperatives to use and cultivation cannabis for
medical purposes. In particular, the new initiative needs to have a
civilian review board to oversee the operations of what appears to be
rogue officers and officials in Mendocino, who hate medical marijuana
and those who use it.
Furthermore, to protect sick, disabled and dying patients, we believe
it is absolutely necessary to legalize personal use and cultivation as
well, since police, prosecutors and judges seem hopelessly unable to
distinguish between medical and non-medical situations.
Meanwhile, Mendocino law enforcement can now be expected to engage in
a frenzy of raids and arrests, while the District Attorney's office
will be just as enthusiastic about prosecuting felonies against any
patient with 7 plants or more. We predict this will be a wake up call
for the voters and they will be ready to support a return to the
Measure G protection of their rights.
The key to understanding why a new initiative is necessary and
desirable is because Measure B passed with a mere 8,493 votes, while
Measure G passed in 2000 with approximately 20,000 votes. That's
because half as many people voted in this June election as in the
November 2000 election.
Since Mendocino is a traditionally Democratic stronghold, it seems
reasonable to conclude that the November 2008 election will again see
twice as many voters. We believe that those voters, after being
harassed by law enforcement this summer, will be far more like to
approve a new initiative to overturn Measure B and reinstate a
modified Measure G type initiative.
MEASURE B-Vote Analysis
Total Votes for June 3, 2008 Election:
16,285
YES on B
8493
52.15%
NO on B
7792
47.85%
Difference between Yes and No vote
701 votes.
===========
Total Votes for November 7, 2000 Election:
34,953
YES on G
58%
NO on G
42%
###
Mendocino pot measure in limbo
By MIKE GENIELLA
THE PRESS DEMOCRAT
Published: Thursday, June 5, 2008 at 4:30 a.m.
Last Modified: Thursday, June 5, 2008 at 4:48 a.m.
With about 40 percent of the ballots still uncounted, victory is not a sure
thing for backers of a hotly contested campaign to repeal Mendocino County's
liberal marijuana guidelines.
Measure B appeared to win Tuesday by a 52-48 percent margin, amounting to
701 votes, in a closely watched election that has attracted national
attention.
But county Clerk Susan Ranochak said Wednesday the preliminary results don't
include 10,385 absentee ballots not yet tabulated. In addition, 439
"provisional" ballots that voters Tuesday dropped by polling places or the
county's election office also are uncounted.
There were 16,364 votes counted Tuesday night from across the county,
compared to the combined 10,824 ballots still outstanding.
The uncounted votes are roughly split between inland southern Mendocino
County, where Measure B posted strong results, and the Anderson Valley,
Mendocino Coast and Willits/Laytonville regions, where there's a long
history of marijuana tolerance.
Ranochak said it could be up to 28 days before official election results are
released, the maximum time allowed under state election laws.
Ranochak's announcement sobered Measure B supporters, who initially believed
there weren't enough ballots left uncounted to substantially alter the
victory margin.
"We're still optimistic, but we had no idea the uncounted vote would be so
large," said Ukiah businessman Ross Liberty, a key Measure B supporter.
Liberty said that based on early polling last winter, he and other Measure B
supporters had hoped for a winning margin of 60 percent or more in order to
"send a big message."
Laura Hamburg, leader of the Measure B opposition, said she's happy the gap
closed in the final weeks.
Liberty and Hamburg agreed the ballots that are to be counted possibly could
shift the outcome.
Even so, both Liberty and Hamburg suggested there might be a middle ground
for residents angry over large-scale marijuana growers flaunting their
presence, and their profits.
Hamburg said marijuana-related issues are complex, and deeply woven into the
culture of a "county we all love."
Liberty said, "We have more common ground than we tended to acknowledge in
the heat of the campaign."
The Measure B campaign drew renewed attention to the scale of marijuana
production in Mendocino and other rural counties. It also underscored
results of a continuing lack of uniform state guidelines.
Law enforcement authorities said the confusion is the fallout from a 1996
statewide vote to decriminalize marijuana cultivation for medical uses. In
2000 Mendocino voters took it a step further by setting a personal use
standard of 25 plants per person, at the time the nation's most liberal.
Voters also directed local law enforcement agencies to make marijuana
arrests and prosecution their lowest priorities. Measure B if passed will
repeal those local provisions but whether the county can conform to more
restrictive state guidelines as dictated is unclear. A state appellate court
has ruled the state guidelines are unconstitutional.
You can reach Staff Writer Mike Geniella at 462-6470 or
mgeniella [at] pressdemocrat.com.
http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20080605/NEWS/806050373/1033/NEWS&tc=yahoo
By MIKE GENIELLA
THE PRESS DEMOCRAT
Published: Thursday, June 5, 2008 at 4:30 a.m.
Last Modified: Thursday, June 5, 2008 at 4:48 a.m.
With about 40 percent of the ballots still uncounted, victory is not a sure
thing for backers of a hotly contested campaign to repeal Mendocino County's
liberal marijuana guidelines.
Measure B appeared to win Tuesday by a 52-48 percent margin, amounting to
701 votes, in a closely watched election that has attracted national
attention.
But county Clerk Susan Ranochak said Wednesday the preliminary results don't
include 10,385 absentee ballots not yet tabulated. In addition, 439
"provisional" ballots that voters Tuesday dropped by polling places or the
county's election office also are uncounted.
There were 16,364 votes counted Tuesday night from across the county,
compared to the combined 10,824 ballots still outstanding.
The uncounted votes are roughly split between inland southern Mendocino
County, where Measure B posted strong results, and the Anderson Valley,
Mendocino Coast and Willits/Laytonville regions, where there's a long
history of marijuana tolerance.
Ranochak said it could be up to 28 days before official election results are
released, the maximum time allowed under state election laws.
Ranochak's announcement sobered Measure B supporters, who initially believed
there weren't enough ballots left uncounted to substantially alter the
victory margin.
"We're still optimistic, but we had no idea the uncounted vote would be so
large," said Ukiah businessman Ross Liberty, a key Measure B supporter.
Liberty said that based on early polling last winter, he and other Measure B
supporters had hoped for a winning margin of 60 percent or more in order to
"send a big message."
Laura Hamburg, leader of the Measure B opposition, said she's happy the gap
closed in the final weeks.
Liberty and Hamburg agreed the ballots that are to be counted possibly could
shift the outcome.
Even so, both Liberty and Hamburg suggested there might be a middle ground
for residents angry over large-scale marijuana growers flaunting their
presence, and their profits.
Hamburg said marijuana-related issues are complex, and deeply woven into the
culture of a "county we all love."
Liberty said, "We have more common ground than we tended to acknowledge in
the heat of the campaign."
The Measure B campaign drew renewed attention to the scale of marijuana
production in Mendocino and other rural counties. It also underscored
results of a continuing lack of uniform state guidelines.
Law enforcement authorities said the confusion is the fallout from a 1996
statewide vote to decriminalize marijuana cultivation for medical uses. In
2000 Mendocino voters took it a step further by setting a personal use
standard of 25 plants per person, at the time the nation's most liberal.
Voters also directed local law enforcement agencies to make marijuana
arrests and prosecution their lowest priorities. Measure B if passed will
repeal those local provisions but whether the county can conform to more
restrictive state guidelines as dictated is unclear. A state appellate court
has ruled the state guidelines are unconstitutional.
You can reach Staff Writer Mike Geniella at 462-6470 or
mgeniella [at] pressdemocrat.com.
http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20080605/NEWS/806050373/1033/NEWS&tc=yahoo
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