https://www.facebook.com/events/605383972821447/
What's at stake is political voice and voter choice in California elections. This challenge is to the heart of the undemocratic Top Two system imposted on our state in 2010. If the challenge prevails, its unclear whether the Top Two system will survive, and we may be able to overturn it and pursue truly democratic reforms like proportional representation. Please come to Pasadena on February 13th and attend this hearing. Its critical that the courtroom is full of people to let the judges know we care about democracy in California. In Chamness v. Bowen, a number of candidates and voters have asked the U.S. Court of Appeals (Ninth Circuit) to decide whether the Top Two Primary's implementing law is unconstitutional. In short, does the State have the power to force candidates to lie on the ballot, or to disenfranchise people who vote for write-in candidates? The Ninth Circuit appeals court will devote a full 40 minutes of oral argument for this case - a large amount of time it reserves for only a small fraction of cases. This shows how important they are taking this and why your attendance is critical. The Top Two Primary's implementing law (Senate Bill 6) has violated the rights of Californians in two troubling ways. First, it violated the rights of minor-party candidates, by forcing them to falsely state on the ballot that they have. Second, Senate Bill 6 disenfranchised all voters who cast write-in votes in the general election. The hearing will be held at 9 am, Feb. 13, 2013, in Courtroom 3 of the Richard H. Chambers Courthouse, 125 South Grand Avenue, Pasadena, California. The case of Chamness vs. Bowen is scheduled to be heard at 11:30 am. However its possible the other cases may be completed more quickly and our case heard earlier. So its critical to be there early to make sure you are there in time. The courtroom opens at 9am and the hearing is open to all members of the public. Parking is available in the lot opposite the courthouse. Please attend to stand for democracy in California! For more about the failure of the Top Two System, see http://www.steven-hill.com/california-electoral-reform-fails-its-first-test/ For more on Chamness vs. Bowen, see http://businessandelectionlaw.com/sb6/mediareleases/ [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] ------------------------------------ --------------------------------------------------------------------------- LAAMN: Los Angeles Alternative Media Network --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Unsubscribe: <mailto:[email protected]> --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Subscribe: <mailto:[email protected]> --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Digest: <mailto:[email protected]> --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Help: <mailto:[email protected]?subject=laamn> --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Post: <mailto:[email protected]> --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Archive1: <http://www.egroups.com/messages/laamn> --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Archive2: <http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]> --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/laamn/ <*> Your email settings: Individual Email | Traditional <*> To change settings online go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/laamn/join (Yahoo! ID required) <*> To change settings via email: [email protected] [email protected] <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [email protected] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
