[BATN] Sally Lieber "transit director" ballot title axed
8/30 Mountain View Voice
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Published Friday, August 30, 2002, in the Mountain View Voice
Transit director, no; councilwoman, yes
By Bill D'Agostino
On Tuesday morning, a Sacramento Superior Court Judge ruled that
Secretary of State Bill Jones needs to modify Mayor Sally Lieber's
self-stated title on the November ballot for the State Assembly by
removing the title "transit director." Judge Gail Ohanesian, however,
will allow Lieber to use the term "councilwoman" on the ballot.
The ruling was the result of a petition filed by Lieber's opponent in
the November election, Republican Stan Kawczynski, a former Sunnyvale
Mayor.
Lieber believed that her year-long stint on the board of directors
for the Valley Transportation Authority last year qualified her to
use the title "transit director." She had also used that title on the
ballot during the March Democratic primary.
Calling from her cell phone Tuesday evening, Lieber -- who did not
attend the court proceedings but had her lawyers there -- claimed a
victory, saying Ohanesian threw out all of Kawczynski's arguments
about transit director being inappropriate because it was an
appointed position.
Kawczynski, whose ballot designation is "independent financial
consultant," said he had no comment on the trial, and referred
questions to his attorney, Gary Wesley.
In a fax responding to a request for comment on the case, Wesley said
the judge "did not believe that Ms. Lieber's meager service on the
VTA Board amounted to a principal occupation or vocation."
Lieber, who will now be listed as "councilwoman" on the November
ballot, called the lawsuit a "waste of government resources."
In the petition, Wesley unsuccessfully argued that Lieber -- who has
served on the council since 1998 -- could not use "councilwoman"
because it was sexist. "The sexist term 'councilman' was dropped from
the Mountain View City Charter many years ago," Wesley wrote.
A similar lawsuit Wesley and Kawczynski are filing against the Santa
Clara County's registrar of voters will go before a judge in Santa
Clara Superior Court on Tuesday.
Lieber and Kawczynski are also be running against Libertarian Kennita
Watson for the State Assembly. Election day is Nov. 5.
Wesley is also currently suing the City of Mountain View for
allegedly: 1) having a council member, Ralph Faravelli, sit on the
council despite not being a registered voter in the city; 2) not
complying with public records requests; and 3) not hiring an
independent auditor. City Attorney Michael Martello called all of
Wesley's claims "baseless."
E-mail Bill D'Agostino at bdagostino [at] mv-voice.com
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