Heathcare district: Court allows Oblak's name to stay off ballot Heathcare district: Court allows Oblak's name to stay off ballot (September 01, 2004)

** Health-care board appointee's filing error made him a candidate for seat he didn't want.

By Renee Batti
Almanac News Editor

The reluctant candidate is a candidate no more: By court-order decree, John Oblak's name will not be on the November 2 ballot as a challenger in the race for a Sequoia Healthcare District board seat, ending an episode as odd as it was confusing.

Mr. Oblak, president of Notre Dame de Namur University in Belmont, had intended to run for a two-year seat on the five-member board, which, with voter approval, would have allowed him to continue serving the term to which he had been appointed August 4.

Instead, he inadvertently filed papers to run for a four-year term. Consequently, he found himself in the uncomfortable position of challenging two incumbents -- both of whom, only days earlier, had voted to appoint him to the board to fill a vacancy.

By the time he realized his mistake, it was too late. He couldn't file papers for the two-year seat, and only a court order could keep his name off the ballot -- a document he quickly sought and won on August 20.

The error threw the San Mateo County Elections Office into confusion for a time, with officials extending the filing period for the two-year seat, then turning away potential candidates after County Counsel Tom Casey ruled that the extension was not appropriate.

Meanwhile, because no one filed for the two-year term by the August 6 deadline, it will be up to the San Mateo County Board of Supervisors to appoint someone to that seat. It was originally filled by Dr. Gerald Shefren, who resigned just months after being re-elected in November 2002; then filled by appointee Dr. Ed Katz, who resigned after serving for one year.

The board decided to appoint someone to replace Dr. Katz, even though the person chosen would have to stand for election in November for the remainder of the term, which expires in 2006.

Mr. Oblak was one of eight district residents who applied for the Shefren/Katz seat early this summer. He had told a board subcommittee that interviewed the candidates that, if he were appointed, he would seek election in November, according to board members.

When asked last week if he would seek the two-year appointment once the supervisors put out the call for applicants, Mr. Oblak said: "I have not even been sworn in yet to the interim term. I will do that shortly, and I will certainly make a decision on whether or not I want to be considered after I've had a little bit of time with the ... district."

It will be "a little bit of time" indeed. The board has only one more regular meeting -- on October 6 -- before Mr. Oblak's appointive term expires.

Now that Mr. Oblak is not on the ballot, board incumbents Kathleen Kane and Malcolm MacNaughton will face only two challengers: Warren Gibson and Sonya Sigler. There are only two seats up for election.

Although the board positions are nonpartisan, the challengers' political affiliation was an issue when they first ran for board seats in 2002, and it is likely to be an issue again. They are Libertarians, who, if elected, will join Libertarian Jack Hickey on the board to constitute a majority.

Mr. Gibson ran on a three-person Libertarian slate that included Mr. Hickey two years ago; their platform included abolishing the district. Ms. Sigler ran independently, but has also questioned the need for a public agency providing oversight for a community hospital.

The Sequoia district co-owns and helps to oversee Sequoia Hospital in Redwood City. The co-owner is Catholic Healthcare West (CHW), which operates the hospital. The district comprises Menlo Park, Atherton, Portola Valley, Woodside, Redwood City, San Carlos and Belmont.

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