US postal ballot
 

Got my mail-in ballot today for Novembers election , have attached a scan if anyone is interested in how 'democracy' works on this side of the pond .
This year in my area we get the choice of voting for President, U S State Representative , Member of the State Assembly (Sacramento), Judges, varoius school boards,various transit boards, hospital boards 12 State propositions , and 2 local propositions .
This year the ballot is shorter than usual since none of the local council are included nor any of the US or State Senators, or State Govenor ,
In all a total of 27 different votes ,

Re: US postal ballot
 

No wonder George W got voted in...they confused the electorate.
I hope there are very many intellegent people in the US who are capable of making such decisions on choices or it may finish up as confused as the Zimbabwe elections.....nobody wins? but everyone is confused.
Now what was the question? :rolleyes:

Re: US postal ballot
 

Hate to say this but next year is the european elections .......... and that is not like voting for one person/one party .... its proportional representation.

Re: US postal ballot
 

What about the local dog catcher:confused:

Things are less complicated here thank god. Our general election next tuesday is for the federal parliament only. Provincial govts. hold their elections whenever they feel like it. Municipal elections are every two years as are school board elections. Judges are not elected but appointed on merit by provincial govts. Our next PM will be the leader of the party which elects most members of the House of Commons. Our head of state is Elizabeth ll, and her viceroy is chosen by parliament. Our senate is not elected and has little power. The 600 or so First Nations elect their own band councils and chiefs. Mmmmm, maybe it isn't that simple after all.;)

Re: US postal ballot
 

So you are gven a vote on schools you have nothing to do with?

Re: US postal ballot
 

What do you mean, "nothing to do with"? Schools are supported in part by property taxes. I own property. I pay taxes.

Re: US postal ballot
 

As in a non-obligatory involvement? Children's enrolement etc.

Re: US postal ballot
 

re. the schools thing ........there is no national curriculum on education apart from Federal requirements for the basics (Reading and Math). Each State sets its own education policy, this is then passed on to each county for a bit of 'tweaking' , obviously rural counties in the far north of California have different requirements than schools in urban inner cities and then on down to each school district (an example of a school district would be all the schools in Hyndburn) these folks elected to the local school board are responsible for keeping an eye on how the appointed school superintendant is spending the money (each school in California gets 'X' dollars per day per child attending , a child plays truant, the school loses a days money for that child) .
The school board decides what extra studies/policys will be implemented , in my area this could mean should non-english speaking children be taught in the same class as english speaking children (total immersion) or taught separatly until they reach a required level of comprehension . Or should a new school be built near to new housing or should existing schools be expanded to take up the slack
In a neighbouring district (inner city Oakland) one of their main priorities is gang violence , the enrolment being 90% ethnic minorities from deprived areas so the requirements are totaly different and as such can be dealt with at a local level , such as trying to deal with a high drop-out rate and low college entry .
One thing a Local school board can do is place a local propery tax on the ballot to raise extra money for the district , this is in addition to the money from the State , this can be used to attract better teachers with higher pay, or different skills (bilingual teachers in my district get more money than mono-lingual teachers , something I don't approve of, but the school board does)
Sounds a bit unfair that kids from "rich" areas with more money should be seen to be getting a better education than kids from poorer areas , but you have to remember that at the outset they all start out with the same 'X' dollars per day and if the local taxpayers want to add more as a future investment in all the kids in their own particular district so be it.
For an example .....if the taxpayers who live in the wealthy 'Ribble Valley' were offered an option of paying an extra £10 per year , the money to be spent on local schools and they said yes, and the taxpayers of more financially strapped Hyndburn offered the same option but turned it down , would you begrudge the 'Ribble Valley' kids having better teachers/schools/facilities ?

sorry for the ramble ;) :D

Re: US postal ballot
 

to be perfectly honest steeljack, i think its immoral, every child should start on a level playing field to me, obviously richer areas can pay fer better facilities, but that don't make it right.

Re: US postal ballot
 

You mean like Tony Blair sending his kids to the London Oratory School cashy:D

Re: US postal ballot
 

in a nutshell.

Re: US postal ballot
 

See you've taken notice:D

Re: US postal ballot
 

In Australia it is conpulsory to vote ,we vote and get the government we want ,

four years ago Americans did not vote and got George W

Hope you get it right this time

Re: US postal ballot
 

Think thats a good idea , but with one proviso ...there should be a box /place on the ballot for "none of the above" . Considering what choices we have available as the major candidates in this upcoming election I would be more than happy to mark that box .

Question , are Brits (or other immigrants) who haven't taken Australian citizenship papers allowed to vote in Australia (think I once read somewhere that they were ) :confused:

Re: US postal ballot
 

It depends on how long you have been a resident,don,t know the exact time span though.
My inlaws came to OZ in 1986 and are not Australian citizens and don,t get to vote