Why is there no Republican endorsement for Trump in local election booklets?
Political endorsements listed in the San Luis Obispo County elections booklet.
– With election season in full swing, many locals are reviewing their official election booklet from the San Luis Obispo County Clerk-Recorder’s office to help them decide how to vote.
Some have pointed out what appears to be a mistake. “Opening and reviewing our mail-in-ballots here in San Luis Obispo County: There is only candidate statements from the Democratic candidates?” said Tom Burgett of Paso Robles in a social media post.
“Further, at the front, it has a matrix of political party endorsements, and there is no Republican endorsement for Trump or Garvey? This is why so many feel that our US elections are no longer fair,” he says.
The reason, according to San Luis Obispo County Clerk-Recorder Elaina Cano, is that the California Republican Party did not turn in endorsements to the county for US presidential candidate former President Donald Trump or California US Senate candidate Steve Garvey.
Republican endorsements sent by the California GOP to SLO County elections office.
“We receive the political party endorsements directly from each respective party,” says Cano. “Whatever they provide me, is what I am required by law to print. It comes from the state level of the party and not the local.”
A county elections official added. “In this case, it’s totally understandable that voters wonder about the differences in endorsements. We print what we receive from the parties at the state level, and the graphics you posted are exactly what we got from them in August. We also have copies of these posted on our website.”
“You might be surprised at the level of detail in the state elections code,” the county elections official said. “Regarding the county voter information guides, the requirements for candidate statements and endorsements are spelled out.”
“In connection with an election at which a candidate for a voter-nominated office will appear on the ballot, a qualified political party may submit to the county elections official a list of all candidates for voter-nominated office who will appear on a ballot in the county in question, and who have been endorsed by the party by whatever lawful mechanism the party adopts for endorsing candidates for voter-nominated office. If a political party timely submits a list to the county elections official pursuant to this subdivision, the county elections official shall print the names of the candidates for voter-nominated office who were endorsed by that political party in the voter information portion of the county voter information guide. The party chairperson shall provide a written copy of the list of candidates endorsed by the party not later than 83 days before the election at which the candidate for a voter-nominated office will appear on the ballot.” – Excerpt from Chapter 4 – State and County Voter Information Guides.
California Republican Party Chairwoman Jessica Millan Patterson, the author of CAGOP’s endorsement letter to the county, did not return requests for comment; however, a spokesperson did reply.
“The CAGOP does not officially endorse in presidential contests,” says Ellie Hockenbury, the communications director for the California Republican Party.
“The party’s endorsement process was designed to respond to California’s top two primary process, which deprived political parties of the right to nominate a candidate to represent the party in the general election,” Hockenbury says.
“President Trump is the Republican Party’s nominee for the general election, he has the CAGOP’s support, and though he is not listed as endorsed in the official county voter guides, we do promote him as our candidate on our endorsement page and social media voter guide,” Hockenbury says.
“With Steve Garvey: The omission was a clerical error on the CAGOP’s end. Steve Garvey is our endorsed candidate, and we have promoted him for voters in other ways, including on the endorsement page of our website and through our voter guide on social media.”
The California Democratic Party did submit an official letter to the county that included its endorsements at all levels of the ballot.
Democratic endorsements sent by the Democratic to SLO County elections office.
The issue is not limited to San Luis Obispo County. Shasta County voters also noticed the omission of endorsements for Trump and Garvey.
Election Day is Nov. 5.
