Mark your calendars: recall ballot count in court Sept. 11

Pacifica treasurer Tracy Rosenberg filed suit last month to halt the recall vote count, charging that Pacifica had delayed the vote too long. The recall was initiated nearly a year ago when over 800 KPFA listeners signed SaveKPFA petitions demanding a recall vote on Rosenberg. Over our repeated protests, Pacifica delayed the recall election past December 31, 2011 — which was the date called for in its own rules and bylaws.

Now Rosenberg is asking a judge to throw the recall out, and for Pacifica to pay her attorneys’ fees, because of the delays. But Pacifica’s legal counsel Andrew Gold writes in an August 27 brief to the court that Rosenberg “is complicit in the actions of the PNB that caused the delay in the selection of an election supervisor and thus the delay in the distribution of ballots. As a result, she cannot benefit from that delay.”

“Plaintiff Rosenberg participated in all of the PNB meetings where the recall election was discussed,” writes Gold, “and personally opposed one of the proposed election supervisors….Despite her intimate knowledge of the procedures, and her involvement in all of the decisions being made, Ms. Rosenberg never objected to the delay in appointing an election supervisor, never raised any issue concerning the record date…and never questioned the timing of the distribution of the ballots. Instead, she waited until the very end of the process to file her complaint.” | READ MORE at the court’s website; enter case number RG12641585. (Gold’s brief is dated 8/27/12 and titled Opposition to Application for Preliminary Injunction Filed.)

NOTE DATE CHANGE: The case will be heard on Tuesday, September 11 at 2:30pm in D-514 in the Hayward Hall of Justice (directions). The public is welcome to attend, so mark your calendars!

In early August, a large number of ballots was picked up by the election supervisor from the Berkeley Post Office, and as witnesses watched, transferred under court order to safe deposit boxes at nearby banks (see photo here).

Endorsements for the YES campaign continue to roll in

Here’s a sampling of the latest YES endorsements (all titles/organizations for ID only): CHRIS KAVANAGH, former elected Berkeley Rent Stabilization Board Commissioner (2002-2008), former Green Party of Alameda County Central/County Council member * EMILY ALMA, Chico Peace and Justice Center, Butte Environmental Council, Occupy Chico, Chico Palestine Action Group * SCOTT CAMIL, activist * HELENE KNOX, poet, KPFA listener/volunteer * EDDY PAY, KPFA music programmer * SASHA FUTRAN, member, KPFA local station board * FRANCESCA ROSA, member, SEIU 1021, delegate. SF Labor Council * BILL HARVEY, former president, Alameda County Labor Council, AFL-CIO* GENE COYLE, economist & listener * LAWRENCE DAVIDSON, former co-host of Probabilities, a KPFA show * MARY TILSON, host, America’s Back 40 * LAYNA BERMAN, unpaid programmer, Your Own Health & Fitness * LISA KERMISH, Vice President, UPTE-CWA Local 9119 * CARLOS ECHEVARRIA, listener, Inglewood CA * JAN ETRE, KPFA Crafts Fair coordinator * CELIA REYES, listener, Oakland * JACK SAWYER, President, Parker Street Foundation * SHARON MALDONADO, listener * RAMSEY KANAAN, KPFA unpaid staff, founder AK Press & PM Press * GUADALUPE LEDESMA, listener 30+ yrs * LESLIE TOWNSEND, college professor * ROBERT LONGER, EVP, CWA Local 9421. | See COMPLETE ENDORSERS’ LIST HERE and ADD YOUR NAME

Still no ballot? Here’s how to make sure your vote counts

We’ve been getting calls and emails from KPFA subscribers who still have not received ballots. What should you do?  REQUEST ONE IMMEDIATELY from Pacifica’s election supervisor at kpfarecall@gmail.com or (323) 375-4126. And please also let SaveKPFA know, by email or phone.

If you were a KPFA member at any time between November 2010 and November 2011, you should have received a ballot . Ballots must be received by AUGUST 3 at this address: KPFA Recall Election, P.O. Box 11708, Berkeley, CA 94712. If you haven’t yet, vote YES now and mail ASAP.

Here are some voting tips. First, you must FILL IN THE ENTIRE YES SQUARE on the ballot for your vote to be counted. Also, please RESIST THE TEMPTATION TO WRITE ANYTHING on the ballot other than your vote. If you made a mistake marking your ballot, contact the recall supervisor and request a replacement ballot right away (and we’d appreciate it if you’d copy SaveKPFA).

IMPORTANT: Keep your PIN ballot stub as proof that you voted. All ballots in KPFA elections have PIN barcodes on them, so that no subscriber may vote more than once. If there are issues with the fairness of the vote process, we’ll be asking you to help us prove that, and your PIN stub may help. The PIN numbers also mean when you request a duplicate ballot, your first ballot will be discarded and only your second one will count.

If you have voted, please take a moment to let us know you have done so. Use SaveKPFA‘s convenient online survey, or simply contact us by email or phone. You’ll be helping us document the vote in case there are challenges to the process. Ballots must be received by August 3. | MORE ON BALLOTS HERE