Alan Gaynor for Rensselaer County District 5 Legislator
On November 4: Vote for Alan Gaynor On the Common Cents Line
Why Common Cents?
The idea for a Common Cents ballot line began from the observation that candidates that appear on more ballot lines tend to get more votes. The idea to name the ballot line "Common Cents" came from a critique of the term "Common Sense" and of the influence of political parties on our democracy.
Common Sense
Have you ever met anyone that thinks they have no common sense? Do you think everyone has common sense? Most people would answer "no" to both of those questions. Clearly, the meaning of common sense depends on the person that claims to have it. And some people don't have it or we would all agree. Naming a line on a ballot for such an ambiguous idea is either silly or cynical. We decided that we could avoid the problem of the ambiguity of common sense by focusing on something objective and material. Everyone understands that the term "cents" refers to money and it has the connotation of an almost atomic financial granularity! Cents are the atoms of our budgets. In addition, since it sounds like "sense", the term "Common Cents" evokes a playfulness that is sadly lacking in most political discourse.
Political Parties
People are more important than political parties. So, it makes no sense to put party before people-oriented issues. No more party-first politics!
Putting parties first has a direct effect on the layout of the ballot. It is too late to change the layout of the ballot but we can explain, clearly and concisely, how to vote so that it counts and reflects our political orientation. Refer to "The Ballot is Confusing" section.
Common Solutions
We need solutions to our issues. The heavy lifting in government is done by the law-makers in the committees of the Legislature. Legislators should:
- Listen to their constituents
- Show up to their committee meetings
- Focus on our common, non-partisan issues, beginning with the Budget
The Budget
The budget contains our common dollars and cents. Let’s try a practical perspective with a fair and easily-understood budget! I have submitted a freedom-of-information request to help make that possible.
The Ballot is Confusing!
The ballot puts the parties in a prominent position--that they don't deserve--as the heading of each row. That caters to party-line voters. Consequently, the people who are running for office--the Candidates--appear multiple times on the ballot for the same office. Here is how to interpret the ballot and vote to express your intentions:
- If it says "Vote for 2" and there are 3 candidates, you can vote for none, 1, or 2 of the 3 candidates. You do NOT have to vote for 2 and you cannot vote for all 3!
- You can vote for 1 or more candidates in the same column. For example, if you feel the need to vote for Patire you can still vote for Gaynor even though they are both in the same column. But don't vote for Patire or Wysocki!
- You can NOT vote for any candidate more than once.
IF YOU WANT ALAN TO WIN, these are your two choices on the ballot:
