• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

The Valley Citizen

Pursuing truth toward justice

The Valley Citizen

Pursuing truth toward justice
  • Arts
  • Education
  • Environment
  • History
  • Nature
  • Politics
  • Wit
  • About

Election Post-Mortem

June 6, 2014 By Eric Caine 2 Comments

Michael Eggman
Michael Eggman

No surprises in Tuesday’s regional election—unless you count Dave Lopez going over the 40% mark in votes. Ordinarily, incumbent Supervisors garner over 60% of votes cast, so Lopez’s showing was a bit stronger than could have been expected. Though Lopez doubtless benefitted from name recognition attained as a two term Modesto City Councilman, incumbent Dick Monteith easily beat back the challenge.

Monteith may have lost a few votes because of his age. The Modesto Bee raised the age issue when it endorsed Lopez. What the Bee most likely forgot is that even at age 82, Monteith can outdistance Lopez by miles when it comes to walking precincts, and Monteith walked tirelessly.

The former Stanford fullback has had a long political career based on a few unwavering principles, one of which is dodging issues. He also has a shrewd awareness of how little it takes to win in a region notorious for low voter turnout.

Monteith attributed his victory to, “seniors, veterans and the Christian community.’” Over the years, he’s built a small but intensely loyal core constituency. In low turnout elections, that’s all that’s needed. In such cases, platforms and issues are irrelevant, so Monteith consistently avoids specifics and favors generalities and platitudes. It’s been a winning strategy for decades now.

Platform was a key motivator for Scott Calkins when he challenged Terry Withrow for District 3 Supervisor. Calkins actually had even stronger farmland preservation positions than Withrow, but when the Modesto Bee reported their platforms were essentially the same, Calkins faced a perpendicular climb to get his message out. Absent deep pockets, it was an impossible task.

Withrow’s strong work ethic and constant contact with constituents make him a formidable candidate under any circumstances. He’s probably got the supervisor’s job for as long as he wants it.

It was hard to see why Tom Letras challenged Adam Christianson for Sheriff. The campaign was cordial, and Letras seemed eager to avoid issues that might come back to haunt him should Christianson win. That’s only expected when one challenges one’s boss.

In the District Attorney’s race, Frank Carson attempted to prosecute incumbent Birgit Fladager in the Court of Public Opinion. Unfortunately for Carson, he used the common defense attorney’s tactic of throwing dirt in all directions, hoping something would stick.

It’s a ploy that often works to create doubt, but prosecution involves removing doubt, not creating it. Carson has vowed to run again, but after polling under 30%, he might change his mind with a few days reflection.

For Michael Eggman, turnout will be a major factor in his November run against incumbent Jeff Denham. Congressman Denham is widely seen as vulnerable, especially since his support of last October’s government shutdown. But Denham will most likely enjoy the endorsements of mainstream media, and unless his extreme positions are exposed and emphasized, his masquerade as a moderate will help people forget how much he’s hurt his district. Eggman will need to remind potential voters just how important this election will be.

Once again, the big story in our local election was low voter turnout. Until that story changes, committed voters will continue to dominate outcomes, no matter how few and unrepresentative of the majority they may be.

Filed Under: Featured, Politics Tagged With: Denham for Congress, Eggman for Congress

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. west_sider says

    June 10, 2014 at 6:39 pm

    I would have loved to see Calkins run (wasn’t possible I know) against Monteith or another candidate instead of having two bad candidates running for the same office (Monteith and Lopez). Carson was a blowout, not surprised. I guess Carmen Sabatino’s show had little influence as Frank Carson and the DA’s race was all Sabatino talked about leading up to the election.

    Reply
  2. Eric Caine says

    June 11, 2014 at 6:13 pm

    I agree it’s a shame Calkins couldn’t run against Monteith. We really need Scott or someone like him to bring progressive ideas to the board.

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Note: Some comments may be held for moderation.

Primary Sidebar

Off The Wire

?Monster Fracks? Are Getting Far Bigger. And Far Thirstier.
“Monster Fracks” Are Getting Far Bigger. And Far Thirstier.
A Times analysis shows that increasingly complex oil and gas wells now require astonishing volumes of water to fracture the bedrock and release fossil fuels, threatening America’s fragile aquifers.
www.nytimes.com
Newsom urges SCOTUS to consider encampment ruling that has 'paralyzed' California cities
Newsom urges SCOTUS to consider encampment ruling that has ‘paralyzed’ California cities
The Democratic governor’s intervention lays down a mark in a legal dispute with potentially profound implications for one of California’s most pressing issues.
www.politico.com
Clarence Thomas Secretly Participated in Koch Network Donor Events
Clarence Thomas Secretly Participated in Koch Network Donor Events
Thomas has attended at least two Koch donor summits, putting him in the extraordinary position of having helped a political network that has brought multiple cases before the Supreme Court.
www.propublica.org
How hungry is California? Millions struggle to eat well in an abundant state
How hungry is California? Millions struggle to eat well in an abundant state
How bad is hunger in California? A lot depends on your access to food aid, which expanded during the COVID-19 pandemic but now is being reduced.
calmatters.org
Sacramento DA sues city over homeless encampments
Sacramento DA sues city over homeless encampments
Sacramento County had nearly 9,300 homeless people in 2022, based on data from the annual Point in Time count. That was up 67% from 2019. Roughly three-quarters of the county’s homeless population….
www.mercurynews.com
At Last, a Real Possibility to Avoid Catastrophic Climate Change
At Last, a Real Possibility to Avoid Catastrophic Climate Change
After decades of minimal action, Congress passed the largest and most comprehensive piece of climate legislation in U.S. history. Will we make the most of this opportunity?
www.audubon.org
How the fentanyl crisis' fourth wave has hit every corner of the US
How the fentanyl crisis’ fourth wave has hit every corner of the US
The epidemic’s staggering scale and infiltration of communities is laid bare in a new study.
www.bbc.com
Can licensed tent villages ease California's homelessness epidemic? This nonprofit thinks so
Can licensed tent villages ease California’s homelessness epidemic? This nonprofit thinks so
Taking people off the street and into tents is a new twist on homeless shelter being explored by the San Francisco-based Urban Alchemy in two tent villages operating in Los Angeles and Culver City.
www.latimes.com
Mississippi has problems, but it's handling homelessness better than L.A.
Mississippi has problems, but it’s handling homelessness better than L.A.
The public tends to blame homelessness on poverty, drug use, crime or even warm weather. But other cities don’t have L.A. levels of street homelessness because they have more available housing.
www.latimes.com
Neo-Nazis March Through Florida Park
Neo-Nazis March Through Florida Park
The demonstrators raised “Heil Hitler” salutes and waved flags with swastikas.
www.thedailybeast.com
Families have high hopes for Gavin Newsom's CARE Courts. Providers want to lower expectations
Families have high hopes for Gavin Newsom’s CARE Courts. Providers want to lower expectations
Gov. Gavin Newsom?s experiment to push Californians with mental illness off the streets and into treatment, CARE Court, starts soon.
calmatters.org
Pope says 'backward' U.S. conservatives have replaced faith with ideology
Pope says ‘backward’ U.S. conservatives have replaced faith with ideology
Pope Francis has blasted the “backwardness” of some conservatives in the U.S. Catholic Church. He says they have replaced faith with ideology and that a correct understanding of Catholic doctrine allows for change over time.
apnews.com

Find us on Facebook

pp
The Valley Citizen
PO Box 156
Downtown Bear Postal
1509 K Street
Modesto, CA 95354

Email us at:
thevalleycitizen@sbcglobal.net

Footer

The Valley Citizen
PO Box 156
Downtown Bear Postal
1509 K Street
Modesto, CA 95354

Email us at:
thevalleycitizen@sbcglobal.net

Subscribe for Free

* indicates required

Search

• Privacy Policy

Copyright © 2023 The Valley Citizen

Dedicated to the memory of John Michael Flint. Contact us at thevalleycitizen@sbcglobal.net

Editor and publisher: Eric Caine

Website customization and maintenance by Susan Henley Design