Last year, when 13 candidates ran for three seats on the Santa Barbara City Council, long-time observers had a hard time remembering a larger field of hopefuls.
So why would only 13 people apply to fill three seats yet more than three times that number apply for a single vacancy?
Clearly, if you want to get on the council, getting appointed to the position is the easiest way to do so. No campaigning, no buying expensive ads or commercials, no weeks or even months of precinct walking.
The good news is you don't have to explain who you are and what you stand for to tens of thousands of voters. Rather you only have to make six people comprehend what it is that you are all about. The bad news is that one of those six people is Michael Self. Good luck with that.
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Given the ideological divide on the present counsel, the applicant who emerges as the winner may very well be named "None of the Above."
Even though Santa Barbara voters don't get to vote on their next council member, there was a public forum held on Sunday afternoon where about half the applicants showed up.
And no, I didn't attend to observe. I had my 15 year old daughter with me on Sunday, and listening to 20 aspiring applicants talk about City government for two hours didn't sound like much fun to her.
It must not have sounded very appealing to the six current members of the Council who actually will get to select the next person to join them. According to my sources, none of them showed up to observe the forum either.
Previously on Craig Smith's Blog
The Disqualified. Why They Didn't Make It
Six Council Applicants Deemed Ineligibile
It Must Have Looked Like The Line To Ride The Matterhorn
45 Apply For City Council, Here Are The Names
Turkeys and Other Things That Might Not Fly
Add Casebeer's Name to Council Hopeful Scorecard
Thyne and Pritchett Want To Take Williams' Place On Council
List of Council Contenders Continues to Grow
© 2010 by Craig Smith and www.craigsmithsblog.com
