Early Voting Starts TODAY!

Early voting starts today.  Check here for a list of locations.  Bring your voter's registration card, or a valid ID.  Check out this earlier post for all the information you'll need to know about voting and candidates.

And as Al Capone said  "vote early and vote often!" (I mean in different elections of course)

C'mon People, Get Out and Vote!

Voter turnout for local races in Bexar County is always dismally low.  That's why I like to vote in those elections because my vote really counts.

This November the elections are statewide, with the Governor's race, several state official spots and some congressional seats up for grabs.  This is an important election, but county election officials are predicting only 30 percent of registered voters will show up, and that's with 27,000 fewer registered voters than in 2006.

So what's holding YOU back?

Do you need to register, or find out if you are registered?   Then check here.
You have until October 6, 2010 to register.

Want to know who represents you now and what districts you're in?  Click here for statewide offices and here for.  For Bexar County and City of San Antonio click here.

Are you not sure who's running?  Then check here.

Do you need more information about the candidates?  Then check here.
Also, check out Texas Public Radio 89.1 FM about a week before the election (November 2, 2010) for interviews with the candidates.

Not sure when voting starts?  Check here.

Are you living abroad, but still want to vote?  Check here.
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Not sure which precinct you're in?  Check here.

Do you want to vote early?  Here are the locations and dates.

Don't know where you're supposed to go vote on election day?  Click here.

So now you have NO EXCUSES!!!

A Tale of Two Salaries

In Texas you better have a good day job if you want to be a politician.

State legislators are paid meager salaries. Senators and representatives alike earn only $7,200 per year, or $14,400 for a two-year legislative period. Some may consider this salary generous, since after all legislators work only for 140 days over two years. However, this salary equals just slightly over $100 per day. Even if our legislators worked only eight hours per day, this would equal only $12.86 per hour for the people who make our state laws and conduct oversight of executive branch offices.

The San Antonio City Council makes even less.  According to the City of San Antonio Frequently Asked Questions page

Per Sections 6 and 9 of the City Charter, the Mayor receives as compensation of fifty dollars ($50.00) for each meeting attended while members of Council receive twenty dollars ($20.00) as compensation for each meeting attended.

But in Bell, California, a small blue collar town with a population of maybe 40,000 it pays to be a politician.  Each of their 5 council members is paid close to $100,000 a year for part time work.

Bell is one of the smallest towns in the country at only 2.5 square miles and 17% of its residents live in poverty.  So how did this tiny town end up with such well paid council members?  Most of them didn't vote.

In 2005 an election was held to set up a city charter, according to the Los Angeles Times, only 400 people voted (probably the city employees, the equivalent to our city manager makes over $700,000, almost twice as much as Sheryl Sculley.)

The highly paid members of the Bell City Council were able to exempt themselves from state salary limits by placing a city charter on the ballot in a little-noticed special election that attracted fewer than 400 voters.

This is why it's important to pay attention to all elections, not just the biggies.

Now I have to put a little plug in for paying legislators in Texas a higher salary.

1. They work much more than just during the legislative session.
2. Only wealthy people can afford to be legislators.
3. If a politician isn't wealthy, he/she will be attractive bait for well endowed special interest groups.

It pays to pay attention and vote.

The Two-Step continues in Texas

Well, despite a lot of controversy and misunderstandings the Texas Democrat's Two-Step primary continues.  Most people didn't even know it existed until the primary between Obama and Clinton.  Clinton opperatives apparently had never heard of it either and even though she won the voting part of the primary, she ended up losing Texas to Obama in the caucuses.  I participated in the caucus just to see what it was like.  Some of the people who participated actually voted for Clinton and then sided with Obama in the caucus, I don't think they got it either.