The following information was provided by the Alameda County Central Committee.
Under the State Elections Code the Peace and Freedom Party is governed by its State Central Committee and County Central Committees. A new State Central Committee is formed in August every two years after the June Primary Election, in even-numbered years, at a convention meeting of the Peace and Freedom Party. This year, the State Central Committee will select the Peace and Freedom Party candidate for President of the United States at our Convention on August 4th and 5th in Southern California.
The Central Committee is elected by County, and by Supervisory District within Alameda County. You are in the Fifth District, where there are eight candidates for six seats, so you should vote for no more than six of the candidates listed below. The existing Central Committee has endorsed all of the candidates and has requested campaign statements from each. Their statements are listed in the order received:
Fifth District Candidate for Central Committee
Marsha Feinland: I am a retired public school teacher and union activist. I was elected to the Berkeley Rent Board in 1994 with the mission of stopping rent increases. I have been active in P&F since 1988. Find my positions at www.feinlandforsenate.org.
Eugene Ruyle: Retired professor of Anthropology (and Marxism), Cal State Long Beach. PFP Candidate for Congress, 1982, 2008, & 2010. Will work to make PFP more open, democratic, and effective. Write in Candidate for 15th Assembly District, 2012. More background into at:
www.cuyleruyle.com.
John Comly: Support Peace and Freedom Party’s Platform! I support anti-capitalism worldwide, opposing US/UN/NATO military and economic warfare. Foreign, forward-basing installations: close them! Troops home! Military-industrial complex: quickly dismantled. P&F should continue special struggles against racism, sexism and anti-LGBT bigotry and violence. For full employment at best union scale wages and benefits.
Norma Harrison: It is enormously satisfying to affirm with people via this conventional venue, their deep desire to build the struggle for socialism communism toward anarchism. It offers people a work to do that is about the entire issue with which we engage. Claim our stolen commons; Occupy the electoral arena.
Edith Hallberg: Retired substitute teacher with 27 years of service, Berkeley resident since 1966, registered P&F in 1968. A just society is possible only if we fight for it by building a movement of many diverse groups. I support the P&F platform and will fight for it until we achieve our goals.
Bob Evans. Peace and Freedom central committee member since 1973. Delegate to the 1974 convention which first adopted an expressly socialist platform. Committed to preserving PFP as the only voice of the working class on California’s ballot. Eviction defense lawyer and former elected member of the Berkeley Rent Board.
Stan Woods. Born and raised in a working class family in West Virginia, long time PFP activist, lifelong labor, Antiwar/Anti-Imperialist, and Anti-Police Brutality activist, Former Elected member of KPFA Local Station Board. Played a role within Occupy Oakland with Shut the West Coast Ports and the Labor Solidarity Committees.
Gerald Sanders. No statement received to date, but Gerald is well known as a long time PFP activist, active in Occupy Oakland and other activities.
In the First, Second, Third, and Fourth Districts, since there are fewer candidates for Central Committee of the Peace and Freedom Party than seats available, the following candidates, who are running unopposed, have been declared elected by the Registrar of Voters:
Second and First Districts (no candidates)
Third District
Albert Dragstedt, Professor of Philosophy: A Socialist Party is now indispensable in order to point to the need to reform the mode of production from one based upon private ownership of what society needs for a viable relation to nature to one which can bring mindfulness to man’s metabolism with nature.
Eric Bergman: Incumbent State Central Committee member. Involved in the struggle for social justice in a variety of ways. This includes prisoners, war, sexism, and unions.
Fourth District
Amy Gray-Schlink. Oakland resident, queer mom, public utility plumber, and unionist, is active with the Freedom Socialist Party, Radical Women, and Sisters United Front for Survival. Openly socialist and feminist, Amy advocates a Peace & Freedom Party that is fully democratic and diverse. She strongly supports united left electoral slates.