Day 325: Disappointed

It's been a long day and night. And a very disappointing one... several of my gals had bad nights at the polls ... more than anyone I know how a loss can sting, and it does... it really hurts.

My sweet Marisa Perez was a complete unknown and gave the Lakewood establishment a good run.... but she came up short tonight in her bid for Lakewood City Council. We worked all day calling voters and gave it our best, but in the end we couldn't pull it off.

The thing is though, Marisa will wake up tomorrow morning and still have her darling parents in town visiting from Texas, her supportive hubby Rudy, and her three healthy precious children. I'd say she wakes up a winner no matter if the voters of Lakewood elected her to office.

And in West Hollywood it's a tragic loss. Lindsey Horvath who was appointed to the council two years ago, lost her seat tonight. What an ugly, nasty election .... don't know why people have to be so negative. Who cares if she was appointed ... you had a chance to vote this time around, you didn't need to be nasty.

And in Beverly Hills, Lili Bosse was victorious, but incumbent Nancy Krasne's race is too close to call. And we all wonder why more women don't run for public office... it's a tough business, very personal, emotional, ugly, and that's just the campaigning part! I'm exhausted from the past few weeks... more tomorrow!

Day 324: Abbe, Lindsey, Marisa, Nancy & Lili ... You Go Girls!

Oh my fabulous West Hollywood candidates... what an ordeal it has been. What a battle they have endured... the endless attacks on ridiculous Blogs, Facebook postings with no merit, countless unsubstantiated articles... it has been quite a spectacle. And it is painful when the attacks are directed at people you love and admire.

Wow, I've said it before on my Blog, it brings up horrible memories of what I went through. I wouldn't wish it upon anyone... the campaign attacks are brutal. They can be mean spirited and hurtful.

These two women are accomplished in their own right. If you do not want to support them, don't. But don't stoop so low as to write untruthful material anywhere you can find a keypad... be productive and spend your time supporting your candidate.

Tomorrow is Election Day in Los Angeles county.

I've got two great women in Beverly Hills that I'm supporting, Nancy Krasne & Lili Bosse; I've got my Marisa Perez down in Lakewood running for City Council; and I've got my two girls Lindsey Horvath & Abbe Land making us proud in West Hollywood.

Do what you can to spread the word about these terrific women who will make a difference in their communities. You want them at the table making policy for you... I assure you, you do, so make it happen!

Day 320: GOTV

Get-Out-The-Vote... I was back phone banking tonight in West Hollywood for Abbe Land & Lindsey Horvath. Yikes the campaign has developed such an ugly tone.

Pictured here are Lindsey and me at the 2009 National Women's Political Caucus Calendar event!

Why can't voters just use their ballot to mark their decision... why all the nasty comments on Blogs, FaceBook, trashy newspapers... you want to support a particular candidate, great go for it, and if you don't then exercise your right and vote for the candidate of your choice.

When I was running for LA City Council, in a city and district multiple times larger then West Hollywood or Lakewood where Marisa Perez is running or Beverly Hills where Lili Bosse & Nancy Krasne are seeking election, the Blog-machine was a war of words. Nasty, negative, unproductive garbage was posted about me and other candidates as well. Just rhetoric based on nonsense. And very hurtful too.

Marisa called me today to say she had read a very nasty post about herself on a local Blog, I immediately said, "Don't read that garbage!" It's mean spirited, full of lies and is written by people who have nothing better to do then right crap on the Internet.

Ah, such is the life of a candidate. There are good days, and there are rough days. You do have to be tough, thick-skinned and believe that you are running to make a difference.

I applaud all my sisters who are on the ballot next Tuesday, Election Day, March 8th! So Get-Out-The-Vote for these wonder women!

Day 318: One Week Until Election Day

Okay kids, we've got one week to get the message out about our endorsed candidates! What are you doing to help make this happen? I hope you can take a couple of hours over the next week to support one of your favorite candidates be victorious on March 8th.

It is very important that women, and these women, have a voice for the policy that will be set forth in your communities. If you have not read my previous Blog posts about who I am supporting...here's a recap.

In the city of West Hollywood I am supporting incumbents Abbe Land & Lindsey Horvath.

Both in a tough battle, especially Lindsey, who was appointed to office two years ago and has push back from some who were not happy about the process. The campaign has taken a very ugly tone. I phoned banked again last night for these two candidates and believe me any time you can give to connect with voters and encourage them to support Abbe & Lindsey, will make a difference.

If you have never made calls on behalf of a candidate, join me this Thursday at Abbe & Lindsey's campaign office and we'll do it together! I promise you will feel so proud that you took an active role in your civic responsibility!

In Beverly Hills I am supporting incumbent Nancy Krasne and first time candidate Lili Bosse.

Pictured here is me with Nancy at an event that she attended on my behalf when I was a candidate for city council.

Both Nancy & Lili will continue to serve their city well and make us proud!

In the city of Lakewood I am supporting Marisa Perez. She too is in a very tough race, running against a very entrenched bureaucracy where council members have held office for 30 plus years. On Election Day I will be pounding the pavement for Marisa encouraging her supporters to get out and VOTE.

These are accomplished women and they have made a very tough decision to run for office. I know this first hand. It is tough, emotional and personal to run for office and be pounded everyday by your opponents and naysayers. Please do what you can to ensure a victory for these fabulous women who will truly make the decisions you would make if you were in their role!

Day 313: Computer Saga

Ugh! Still challenged by computer complications! While technology has certainly made parts of our lives more current, convenient, and fun... the downside is that we are so dependent on our "tools" that when they malfunction, you feel like you are malfunctioning!

So today was more fine tuning, and trying to get me up and running smoothly. Meanwhile, I am behind on submitting proposals, updating my Blog, and responding to emails. I'm not in a very happy mood about all this computer mess!

I did however, make it over to Abbe Land & Lindsey Horvath's campaign offices to make more voter phone calls on behalf of their campaigns. At least that was a productive part of my day!

Day 308: More Campaigning

You can surely tell we have an election coming up. Yep, March 8th is Election Day and there are lots of hot races around the county. Today I spent time phone banking for Abbe Land & Lindsey Horvath, both running for re-election in West Hollywood.

Unfortunately their campaigns, as many campaigns often do, have turned a bit ugly. Untruthful and nasty rumors being spread, accusations lobbied at them, unsubstantiated and unverified news reports being written, ah brings up all the fun stuff from campaigning - NOT!

It is really unfortunate that people can't just let the candidates have their positions, if you agree, great, if not support someone else. But don't go negative or ugly!

Check out my post #306 to learn more about Abbe & Lindsey, both committed public servants.

If you live in Beverly Hills you are not immune to nasty politics either.

Same rumor machine and misinformation... do your own research on your candidates, don't just believe everything you read or hear.

I'm supporting the re-election of Nancy Krasne, and the election of Lili Bosse.

Nancy was a champion of mine when I ran for Los Angeles City Council. As we know, I lost. Nancy then ran as a first time candidate and kicked ass!

She is direct and honest and the type of person you want watching the city coffers and business.

While Lili is a first time candidate, she is not new to politics in Beverly Hills. She is a long time public servant serving on many city boards and commissions for more than a decade. A reliable volunteer, and public school booster she learned the ropes by actually doing the work. She would be a great compliment to Nancy and I'd love to see these two women rock it together.

In the meantime, let's hope that over the next two weeks the ugliness of politics and campaigning will subside.

Day 306: More Great Women Candidates

Tonight I did some campaigning on behalf of two outstanding women running for public office. West Hollywood city council members Abbe Land & Lindsey Horvath are running for re-election. Not only are they champions of women, community, health care, choice, environment, and all the other issues I carry near to my heart, they are also friends.

These are women, who over the years through our political circles, have always shared a fondness and mutual love & respect with me. Abbe is a true leader not only in West Hollywood but throughout Los Angeles County. She has mentored women, supported them, and along the way always displayed a calmness and grace even when confronting battle tough campaigns that turned very ugly over the years.

Lindsey is a young and inspiring woman with potential to continue building on her accomplishments and is not only making her peers proud, but also us "mama" figures too.

If you live in West Hollywood I implore you to cast your votes for these accomplished women on March 8th. If you live outside their city, you surely know people who live in West Hollywood, so please implore them to vote.

As I called voters tonight, I was pleased by Yes responses and dismayed by the negative No comments from voters. Brings back a lot of memories for me. Some very painful.

All the lies and negative items posted about you as a candidate. All the ugly people spewing inaccurate information about you as a person, your character, your accomplishments. It's so very painful, and that is why so few of us jump in the frying pan.

I must applaud my women colleagues, Abbe, Lindsey and my friend Marisa Perez all strong women running for office this election cycle. We also have two outstanding women running for city council in Beverly Hills, Nancy Krasne & Lili Bosse. I will post more about them tomorrow.

Use your voice, vote for these candidates and let women around the world know that we deserve to make the decisions that impact our lives!