Malibu Surfside News
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• The Publisher’s Notebook
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If Election Day is on the calendar,
exhortations for responsible citizenship dominate public
communication prior to the ballot boxes being moved
into place. But just because an election is held
doesn’t always mean voters will take part. Malibu voter
turnout has steadily declined with each municipal
election, and when even the candidates proclaim that campaign
forums are “boring,” how can one expect
enthusiasm from the typical citizen whose schedule is
already crammed beyond capacity? What may keep the
downturn from becoming disastrous is that more and more local
voters are casting absentee ballots. Indeed, some City Hall
pundits contend that if the ABs that are now on hand are
counted, they will forecast the final tally. Beyond
systemic trends toward less participation in government, there
may be some truth to the contention that the sheen has worn off
the young city that 18 years ago fueled fantasies of creative
governance that would serve as a beacon wherever the magic name
of Malibu was intoned. Instead of innovation,
the dominant local public policy forces are reactive rather
than proactive. All too often, litigation, or the threat of it,
dictates city responses.
The Malibu Surfside News does not endorse
city council candidates, regarding endorsement as a
throwback to an era when newspaper publishers imperiously
thought they had the prerogative to dictate voter behavior
based on their own self-interest. Even a cursory glance at
Malibu demographics indicates that what local voters
need is not direction, but candidates who engage their
interest and encourage them to get involved in
the political process. The 2008 council race was so
prosaic that turnout at local campaign events was low, and
outside area interest in the election was even lower. Perhaps
that’s why a relatively apolitical, surfer-outdoors
enthusiast, non-traditional type is the lone candidate who
attracted any mainstream media attention. Charisma aside, when
a Malibuite speaks out against pollution and
mansionization, and defies the elitist and materialistic image
with which the community is tagged, outsiders take
notice. If the current campaign is any indication, it will be
increasingly difficult to get local voters to attend to
candidates and issues without infusing more energy into
the process. The spark can come from personality or
policy, but without it, the Malibu political process can
short-circuit.
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