Beware of phony voter guides
Flooding Yorba Linda mailboxes this week are the so-called voter guides, published by profit-making businesses masquerading as organizations that research each candidate’s stands on issues in order to make “informed” recommendations to local residents.
City Council, school trustee and water board contenders buy endorsements in the guides, known to political professionals as “slate mailers,” to associate their candidacies with the high-sounding names cynically adopted by these extremely profitable enterprises.
And candidates pay a pretty penny for the privilege—endorsements are sold to the first or highest bidder for up to $2,650, which buys a name listing and perhaps three or four lines of type in a brochure shared with dozens of other candidates and ballot propositions.
The amount of money to be made has led to a record number of guides mailed to voters in the weeks before an election. The guides hit mailboxes either when absentee ballots are delivered or just prior to Nov. 4.
Some guides are designed to appeal to supporters of a political party, while others are aimed at ethnic groups, voters concerned about specific issues and independent or non-partisan voters.
Here are organization names and endorsement costs for just a few guides scheduled for mailing this year:
The Latino Voters Guide charges candidates $100; Asian-American Voter Guide $175; Republican Women’s Voice $611; Republican Voter Checklist $1,200; Continuing the Republican Revolution $600; and Democratic Voters Choice $300.
Issue-oriented guides and fees include National Tax Limitation $1,003; California Border Security $920; Save Proposition 13 $864; and COPS, short for California Organization of Police and Sheriffs, $587.
Independent-sounding guides and costs are Get Out and Vote $2,241; Citizens for Good Government $800; Your Ballot Guide $700; California Vote by Mail $805; Voter Guide by Mail $1,280; California Voter Guide $2,650; and Official Non-partisan Guide $750.
Several groups sell endorsements on two mailings, sending one guide to Republicans and another to Democrats. Candidates can pay for spots on both brochures.
At best, candidates buy endorsements on the guides to leave multiple “name impressions” with voters, the same theory behind the posting of so many roadway signs and the several times a candidate’s name is repeated in those annoying automated telephone calls.
A less charitable view: candidates think voters who identify with a group’s name will be fooled into using the guide when marking ballots because voters believe the group really researched the issues and candidates endorsed, rather than just collecting an up-front fee.
City Council, school trustee and water board contenders buy endorsements in the guides, known to political professionals as “slate mailers,” to associate their candidacies with the high-sounding names cynically adopted by these extremely profitable enterprises.
And candidates pay a pretty penny for the privilege—endorsements are sold to the first or highest bidder for up to $2,650, which buys a name listing and perhaps three or four lines of type in a brochure shared with dozens of other candidates and ballot propositions.
The amount of money to be made has led to a record number of guides mailed to voters in the weeks before an election. The guides hit mailboxes either when absentee ballots are delivered or just prior to Nov. 4.
Some guides are designed to appeal to supporters of a political party, while others are aimed at ethnic groups, voters concerned about specific issues and independent or non-partisan voters.
Here are organization names and endorsement costs for just a few guides scheduled for mailing this year:
The Latino Voters Guide charges candidates $100; Asian-American Voter Guide $175; Republican Women’s Voice $611; Republican Voter Checklist $1,200; Continuing the Republican Revolution $600; and Democratic Voters Choice $300.
Issue-oriented guides and fees include National Tax Limitation $1,003; California Border Security $920; Save Proposition 13 $864; and COPS, short for California Organization of Police and Sheriffs, $587.
Independent-sounding guides and costs are Get Out and Vote $2,241; Citizens for Good Government $800; Your Ballot Guide $700; California Vote by Mail $805; Voter Guide by Mail $1,280; California Voter Guide $2,650; and Official Non-partisan Guide $750.
Several groups sell endorsements on two mailings, sending one guide to Republicans and another to Democrats. Candidates can pay for spots on both brochures.
At best, candidates buy endorsements on the guides to leave multiple “name impressions” with voters, the same theory behind the posting of so many roadway signs and the several times a candidate’s name is repeated in those annoying automated telephone calls.
A less charitable view: candidates think voters who identify with a group’s name will be fooled into using the guide when marking ballots because voters believe the group really researched the issues and candidates endorsed, rather than just collecting an up-front fee.
posted by Jim Drummond at 12:00 PM
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