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As part of Noozhawk’s June 7 primary election coverage, we are publishing Q&As with candidates running for contested county races of Sheriff-Coroner; Clerk-Recorder-Assessor-Registrar of Voters; and County Superintendent of Schools.
Candidate answers may be lightly edited for spelling and formatting, but are otherwise presented as they were submitted.
For Clerk-Recorder-Assessor, candidates include Joe Holland and Elrawd MacLearn.
The June 7 election is a vote-by-mail election with ballot drop-off boxes and polling places also available for returning ballots.
Click here for more information about the positions on the June 7 ballot and how to cast your vote.
Noozhawk: Why do you want to be elected as County Clerk-Recorder-Assessor-Registrar of Voters?
Elrawd MacLearn: There is a dearth of trust with our “elections czar” and with the election process here in the county. Common across all creeds, races, and political persuasions, most voters in our county have lost faith in the election process. This phenomenon shows in voter turnout: at the time of writing, only 8% of the voter population has voted with less than two weeks left. They have lost hope. I too experienced a loss of faith in the Registrar after I ran for the Santa Barbara Unified School District School Board in 2020 and became concerned after claims were made that 3,000 student ballots were cast from an empty UCSB dormitory. The only response given from the incumbent was essentially, nothing to see here; move along.
The Clerk-Recorder-Assessor is a position that maintains the county’s vital records, assesses real property value, and manages the elections countywide. Of those three roles, overseeing our vote is the most critical to our republic, because our voice is our vote. Searching for solutions to my faith crisis, I began to research our county’s voter data on our local 2020 election and found that in multiple voter precincts, there were over 100% voter turnout. I am still waiting for an explanation from the incumbent. Since my phone calls, emails, letters, and visits to Joe Holland’s office have been ignored, I am holding him accountable to the voters and the voices of our votes. If we don’t have an honest election, we don’t have honest elected officials.
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Noozhawk: What makes you the most qualified candidate for the position?
Elrawd MacLearn: Part of the reason why we’re experiencing a crisis of faith with government is the crisis of character within the office. I am the most qualified, because I’m the candidate with integrity who has answered the voters’ cry for transparency, accuracy, and integrity in our elections. As such, I am willing and wanting to take the necessary steps to restore that trust. I define integrity as doing the right thing regardless of difficulties. I operate with integrity. One of the times it was very difficult to do so, was when I put my career on hold for two years to stay with my younger siblings and be the father figure that they needed, after I graduated college. It was because of my integrity that I have taken it upon myself to run this campaign and endure the gauntlet, because I believe it’s the right thing for me to do and regardless of the outcome; I want to expose the issues in hopes of bringing positive changes to our election process.
Noozhawk: What experience do you have as a manager or supervisor?
Elrawd MacLearn: Knowledge + experience – integrity = corruption. An example of this is how the incumbent County Clerk counts and certifies the ballots of the election that he’s contested in and never recused himself from counting his own ballots. Seems to me like the fox is guarding the henhouse. The right thing to do would be to recuse himself from managing an election he’s also a candidate in. Additionally, the Registrar has no process in place for Joe Holland to recuse himself. I invited Joe to a public forum/debate to discuss my concerns on this and other issues, but I received no response. How can we restore faith in our elections when the incumbent is overseeing his own election? Holland has been in his office for 20 years and seems to have become complacent by refusing to engage the voters or answer to their concerns. We urgently need change and I have turned down several leadership opportunities, because I believe that election integrity is so critical.
Noozhawk: The Clerk-Recorder’s role involves managing vital records, marriage records, and real estate records. The Assessor’s role involves property value assessment and property tax programs. The Registrar of Voters’ role involves administering public elections for Santa Barbara County, cities, school districts and special districts. What experience do you have with public records, property assessment, and administering public elections?
Elrawd MacLearn: Not to be flippant, but this is an entry-level position. If experience was necessary, it would’ve been required. The requirements for the Clerk-Recorder-Assessor position are to be older than 18 years of age, not be a criminal, live in the county, and upon winning the election; taking a test to obtain a permanent appraiser certificate. I have managed polling places for many years and also managed multiple voting precincts during elections and I am familiar with the elections process. To be certain, there will be a learning curve upon assuming office. Consequently, I am well equipped to learn the operations and processes of the office. I graduated from UCLA with a bachelor’s in biology and during my time there, was on the Dean’s List, served as the undergrad TA for molecular biology, was a Phi Theta Kappa member, and attended on a full scholarship. In my community college, I was the president of the EOPS honors club, involved in student government, earned several partial scholarships, and also frequently made the Dean’s List.
Noozhawk: How safe and secure are elections in Santa Barbara County? Do you think any major changes are needed to the way local elections are administered?
Elrawd MacLearn: Not one Vote-by-Mail ballot should be delivered to the incorrect address and a system should be devised to track the ballot from every node within its journey from printing to being counted. We also need to have the most up to date voter registry. Deceased voters, non-residents, non-citizens, and other illegal registrations should not be receiving a ballot and the Registrar must actively ensure an updated registry. The current inaccurate registry has caused considerable waste in ballots being sent to incorrect addresses and made our elections vulnerable to bad actors.
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