Seated: Sam Severs, Christopher Schmidt, Robert Giedt
| Vol. IX, No. 1 | Editor: Robert Giedt | January 1999 |
The two years I've spent with the Libertarian Party of San Mateo County (LPSM) have been fun, rewarding, and educational. I wish it could continue, but I'm moving to Colorado later this month.
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| Standing: J.R. Prohaska, Steve
Marsland, Bernie Jackson, Frank Adam, Lacy Nelson Seated: Sam Severs, Christopher Schmidt, Robert Giedt |
The LPSM has given me a great opportunity to learn, grow, and contribute to something important. I'd like to share my experience with all its members, because I suspect many others would benefit from opportunities at the LPSM.
In early 1997, I walked in to my first LPSM meeting with no experience in politics and no idea what to expect. I had recently discovered libertarianism and wanted to write about libertarian ideas. The newsletter editor, then Delmas Gault, was very encouraging and invited me to submit articles whenever I wanted. Soon I had a few published. It wasn't so hard, and it was fun to see my name in print.
Later that year, I began volunteering for Mike Moloney's congressional campaign. Mike was happy to have help creating a Web site and writing news releases, flyers, and brochures. There was as much work as I cared to take on, and I got a behind-the-scenes glimpse of our electoral system and media.
At the beginning of 1998, I was elected Campaigns Chair. Steve Marsland was elected Chair and announced he would run for State Assembly. I then had an opportunity to work with two candidates, each with his own style. They did well, both finishing among the top third-party contenders in the entire state. Steve's publicity efforts also began to attract some new faces to our meetings.
In October 1998, I had a personal success of my own. The Freeman, a national free-market journal, published my article "The Fine Art of Conservation." It never would have happened without the experience and confidence I gained writing for the LPSM.
The LPSM will continue to grow and be ever more effective. Already, Steve is hatching plans for his 2000 State Assembly campaign. Two other seats are open for would-be candidates, and a new batch of LPSM officers will be elected at January's meeting. In 1999, the LPSM will need volunteers for phoning, writing, debating endorsements, stuffing envelopes, canvassing, public speaking, and much more. Whether you're looking for a low-pressure place to try out a dormant skill or a way to roll up your sleeves for something you believe in, the LPSM is a great place to do it.
Farewell, LPSM, and thanks for everything!
The Annual Meeting of the Libertarian Party of San Mateo County will be held on Wednesday, January 20 at Chef Peking in Redwood City (see directions and map on page 3 for the location). At this business meeting, officers will be elected to fill all available positions for the upcoming year and delegates will be selected to represent San Mateo County at the State Convention.
All dues-paying members of the Libertarian Party are eligible to vote and run for an LPSM office. Although there are a number of returning incumbents interested in various positions, this by no means indicates that those candidates are guaranteed those positions. If you feel you're up to a particular task, by all means come on down and cast your hat into the ring. We'd love to hear from you!
Below is an abbreviated list of the duties of LPSM elected officers (as described in the LPSM bylaws at http://www.LPSM.org/) as well as the candidates expressing interest in those positions for 1999:
We're also planning to select three additional delegates from our county as representatives to the state Libertarian Party Convention in San Jose this February. If you're interested and a dues-paying member, let us know and you may be able to represent us!
Where: Doubletree Hotel, San Jose
When: Friday, Feburary 12 to Monday, February 15
Confirmed speakers: Marshall Fritz, David Brin, Dan Fylstra, Michael Cloud, Jon Petersen, Dennis Schumpf, Ron Unz.
Business: Bylaws/Rules Amendments, Platform Amendments, Election of LPC officials.
For more information, visit the LP Web site at http://www.ca.lp.org.
Both Christopher Schmidt and I spent time during December analyzing the final precinct results for the 19th Assembly race as well as Mike Moloney's 12th Congressional race. Steve increased his vote total from 3,961 to 4,203 between the primary and the general election, and garnered 3.9% of the vote. This placed Steve in ninth of 56 third-party candidates in the state. Mike Moloney increased his vote total to over 7,000 votes and got 5% of the vote, ranking first in the state among third-party candidates for Congress.
Basically, personal contact worked. Where the candidate himself or a volunteer personally contacted voters, those voters voted for the candidate. Whether the contact was by walking a precinct, holding a sign up at intersections and talking to voters, or giving a speech and talking with people afterwards, personal contact resulted in votes, volunteers, and contributions.
Signs also played a strong role in stabilizing and retaining votes that personal contact had obtained earlier in the election season. Signs were important in keeping people voting for our candidates. This is particularly pronounced in Pacifica, where my campaign had over 50 signs up.
Some things that did not get any noticeable results were mailings to voters, advertising in newspapers, newspaper articles, or neighborhood coffee mailings. We are basically seeing that if a voter is going to cross party lines to cast his or her vote, they need to see something from us the other parties are not providing personal contact. The vote is so focused on the individual candidate that even though we mailed to them, many voters for Mike Moloney did not vote for me and vice versa. The vote is really for the person rather than the party.
Based on these lessons, I am putting together a plan for my year 2000 Assembly race. I'm starting this campaign with over 100 supporters, volunteers, contributors, and advisors, as well as solid experience from my 1998 campaign.
I am pleased to announce that I have recruited a very capable campaign manager, Frank Adam, a CPA here in Pacifica. I have also recruited a former Rotary Club chair to act as a contact to arrange speeches for me at public service organizations throughout the district. I am also very fortunate to have recruited a campaign treasurer. With the addition of these volunteers to my campaign organization, I will be able to focus more on the personal contact with voters my campaign demands.
Those interested in helping with my year 2000 Assembly race can contact me at 650/738-5926.
The following are some highlights from December's business meeting:
We opened with a summary by Steve of his campaign experiments and his analysis of their effectiveness. Personal contact, once again, proved the most effective technique. I presented the data I used to analyze the effectiveness of our test mailing to select precincts in San Mateo and Burlingame prior to the election. (Although we were pleased to gain a new member in response to the mailing, the hoped-for boost at the polls was not statistically significant.)
Looking forward to the January 20 annual meeting, we ascertained that six officers are willing to continue in their present jobs if no-one else steps forward, but we always like to see more members participate actively! Two newly active members expressed willingness to serve in two recently vacated offices. Beyond those, the Fundraising chair is still vacant and Barbara Less is doing double duty as Activities Chair and Public Relations Chair, so if you have any interest in one of those areas, you're especially invited!
We kicked around a proposal to use a Las Vegas travel promotion as a new member incentive. Some thought it seemed a tad cheesy, but the San Diego LP experienced great success with it last year.
My proposed amendment to our bylaws (permitting the executive committee to transact business by telephone, fax, and e-mail) was adopted by a central committee vote of 70 (with 2 abstentions).
Robert announced that he has set up 3 e-mail mailing lists for LPSM members and friends: a low-volume list for announcements, one for general discussion, and one for executive committee business. To sign up, you visit a new e-mail page on our LPSM Web site at http://www.california.com/~lpsm/ and submit your e-mail address via a form. The ListBot server will send you a confirmation request via e-mail and your reply will close the deal. The same automated procedure can be used to unsubscribe.
We briefly touched on the perennial question of voice mail and phone book listings.
Finally, we bade Bernie Jackson a fond farewell, as he departs our region for Colorado.
Wednesday, January 20
Chef Peking
(Directions to Chef Peking)
515
Veterans Boulevard, Redwood City
Dinner (optional) and discussion:
6:30--7:30pm in the reserved dining room
Business meeting: 7:30--9:00pm in the reserved dining room.
Agenda:
Election of 1999 LPSM officers, delegates to the state convention and other
business as necessary.