Voter Education Campaign to Focus on San Diego’s Financial Crisis

Endorsements of Ballot Propositions and Profiles of City Candidates Comes as New Polling Shows City Out-of-Step with Public on Reforms

SAN DIEGO - The Performance Institute, working with the campaign committee “San Diego Citizens for Accountable Government,” unveiled a massive voter education effort to educate San Diego voters on the poor state of the City’s finances and associated ballot measures and positions of candidates for city offices. The decision to launch and fund the voter education drive comes on the heels of polling results showing the ballot measures offered by the City do NOT top the list of reforms desired by voters.

“The November election is the most important opportunity voters have to do something about the escalating financial crisis in our City before the situation gets worse,” noted Carl DeMaio, President of the Performance Institute. “Our single goal in this campaign is to educate voters on the city’s financial problems and offer positive reforms for change.”

Positions of Candidates and Ballot Measures Profiled in “Voter Guide”
The campaign released its “2004 VOTER GUIDE (.pdf)”—the first of several mail pieces that will be sent to San Diego voters this fall. The piece provides the public with facts on the city’s financial problems, makes endorsements on city ballot propositions, and profiles the positions of the six candidates for City Office in the November 2nd election. The Voter Guide was put together after the Institute asked the candidates for Mayor, City Attorney, and District 1 City Council to fill out a survey detailing their positions on the ten reforms in the San Diego Citizens’ Budget Plan.

“We’re pleased that the candidates exhibited generally strong support for the Citizens’ Budget reform agenda,” commented DeMaio. The Voter Guide recommends a Yes Vote on City Propositions D, E, F and G. It calls for the defeat of Proposition J (TOT tax increase) and Proposition H (maintaining the Retirement Board’s conflict-of-interest).

Polling Shows City Out-of-Step with Public on Financial Reforms
The Institute released polling (.pdf) showing that voters are increasingly concerned about the city’s worsening financial state. What’s worse, the polling shows that the ballot measures offered by the City do not satisfy the public’s desire for fundamental reform of city government. The ten reforms in the San Diego Citizens Budget Plan generate widespread support—with three capturing overwhelming support. Among likely voters, the top three desired city reforms are: Balanced Budget Accountability Initiative (81% favor); Independent Audit of City Funds (78%), and Reorganize City Government (62%). The polling shows a surprisingly close race over Proposition G: the “Strong Mayor” Ballot Initiative (49.5% Support vs. 40% Opposed).

“The public is definitely paying attention to the problems facing the city. They also are quite engaged on the kinds of reforms they want enacted to bring accountability, transparency and efficiency back into our city government,” concluded DeMaio. “I’m an optimist that we can turn the city’s financial situation around if this level of public support is translated into voter action on November 2nd.”

Additional information on the campaign can be found at www.sandiegobudget.org.

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