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On Election Day, some activism urging leaders to abide by the presidential election results is well underway, and more is expected. We also have a last round of campaign finance numbers to report for candidates in the Community College District race.
‘Protect the Vote’ protests
On Halloween, three different protests were held in the Midpeninsula to encourage American leaders to protect the results of the 2020 Presidential Election, should President Trump lose the election and not concede the presidency, according to a press release. They were held along El Camino Real in Menlo Park, Palo Alto and San Mateo.
In Menlo Park, the local Raging Grannies group dressed in orange and black and protested at the plaza in front of Kepler’s Books and Cafe Borrone in Menlo Park. According to a press release, protesters wore orange and black monarch butterfly costumes and performed a “Dance of Peace.”
The Raging Grannies is a local activist organization that counts among its members women who are seniors and other individuals. They often wear costumes and bring a performative component to their demonstrations.
Protect the Results, a coalition that was formed to protect the election results if President Trump loses but does not concede, is organizing nationwide actions set for Wednesday, Nov. 4, according to a press release. One local protest to protect election results is scheduled Wednesday and set to start at 3 p.m. at Art Ventures Gallery at 888 Santa Cruz Ave. It was set to include a march to Facebook headquarters at 1 Hacker Way.
The Raging Grannies did not want to wait until after Election Day, however, to hold their protest, said Ruth Robertson, a member of the advocacy group. “As Trump continues to make comments delegitimizing the integrity of our elections and implying that he won’t concede, concerned citizens across the country are planning to come together to demand that every vote be counted and to call for a peaceful transition of power,” she said in a written statement. “The Grannies are on the streets now and support a mass mobilization of protesters in the event that valid election results are not honored.”
Campaign finance updates
In the local race for the seat to represent Area 5 of the San Mateo County Community College District, which covers Menlo Park northeast of El Camino Real, East Palo Alto and Redwood City, there are three candidates running: John Pimentel, Lisa Hicks-Dumanske and Blair Whitney. While Whitney did not report any campaign fundraising, Pimentel reported his campaign has spent more than $200,000 and Hicks-Dumanske reported her campaign had spent just over $17,000.
More details about campaign fundraising are below. Access The Almanac’s Voter Guide story about the candidates here.
John Pimentel
Between Sept. 20 and Oct. 17, San Mateo County Community College District Area 5 candidate John Pimentel raised $9,273 and spent $77,111. So far this year he has spent $200,527, most of which came from $150,000 he personally loaned to his campaign.
He spent the money on yard signs, political data, campaign consultants, mailers and postage.
Top contributors included Mark Robinson of Greenbrae ($5,000), Thomas Stephenson of Atherton ($2,500), Charles Patton of Del Mar ($1,500), Alfredo Livas of Gardena ($1,000), Albert Pimentel of Los Gatos ($1,000), Albert Brodie of Sacramento ($500), Niv Persaud of Atlanta ($500), John Lamm of San Francisco ($259), Mike Rose of Menlo Park ($250), Carolyn Bowser of Menlo Park ($250) and Lauren Dutton of Oakland ($200).
In the $100 category he earned contributions from Michael Brownrigg, a Burlingame Councilman who ran for the state Senate seat earlier this year; Juanita Celaya of San Mateo, Lance Conn of Atherton, Doug Dillard of Belvedere Tiburon, Megan Freiermuth of Menlo Park, Theodore Garrish of Belmont, Scott Harshbarger of Cambridge, Massachusetts, Patrick Johnston of Stockton, Julie Justus McGinity of Redondo Beach, Neal Kaufman of Burlingame, Johnny Khamis, a council member in San Jose; Bradford Lewis of Redwood City , Mark Molumphy of Burlingame, Larry Moody, an East Palo Alto councilman; Hayden Price of Tracy, Michael Sousa of Lafayette, Stephen Taylor of West Hollywood, Natu Tuatagaloa of San Rafael, Ralph Vogel of Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, and Robert White of Sacramento.
Lisa Hicks-Dumanske
During the same time period – between Sept. 20 and Oct. 17, Lisa Hicks Dumanske raised $2,423 and spent $11,757. This year, she has raised $20,958 and spent $17,292 and did not loan any personal funds to her campaign. She spent the funds on campaign literature and mailings as well as online ads.
Individual contributions were smaller than those received by Pimentel, but a larger proportion were from residents within the area in which she is campaigning. They included $150 each from Georgina LaBerge and Jane Taylor of Redwood City, and $100 each from A.E. Oyster of San Carlos, Maria Kramer of Redwood City, Carolyn Schutz of Redwood City, Nancy Brown of Redwood City, Helen Lomas of Redwood City, Gary Lancina of Glendale, Wisconsin, Kristi Panton of Menlo Park, Elizabeth Gomez of Redwood City, Judy Imperiale of Redwood City, Ann Mylod of Redwood City, David Vallerga of Emerald Hills, Jennifer Johnson of Daly City, and Holly Machette of San Carlos.
Editor’s Note: A previous version of this story indicated that the Raging Grannies organization organized all three of the Midpeninsula protests. It only organized the Menlo Park one, according to organization member Ruth Robertson.