One day in early September, your ticket to another fall filled with election excitement will arrive. You guessed it! If you are an active CalPERS member, your 2017 CalPERS Board of Administration Member-at-Large Election ballot package in a bright blue envelope will be in your mailbox.
There are two Member-at-Large seats on the CalPERS Board up for election this fall, and IFPTE Local 21 is endorsing the two labor candidates: David Miller and Michael Bilbrey. While Bilbrey is running for re-election, Miller’s competition for the seat is a hedge fund manager from Wall Street. Public employee pensions are under attack, and we need to have the right people on the CalPERS Board to look out for working people’s retirement- not profits for Wall Street.
Inside the bright blue envelope you will find three items:
- Your Candidate Statement Booklet
- Your ballot with your unique personal identification number (PIN)
- A return envelope
The Candidate Statement Booklet will provide you with information on how to vote and what the candidates want you to know about them. The how-to vote information is especially important this year because we will have two new voting methods, so three in all. You can now vote:
- Online
- By phone
- By mail
For the first time ever, you will be able to vote online or by telephone, from your computer, tablet, smartphone, or landline. The two new options can mean voting in seconds from anywhere. The paper ballot is still important because it contains your unique PIN that you will need for these new voting methods. If you want to vote by mail, use the paper ballot in your blue envelope, place your completed ballot in the postage-paid return envelope and drop it in the U.S. mail. All paper ballots must be returned by October 2 to be counted.
The Candidate Forum is set for Thursday, September 7, from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., in the CalPERS Auditorium, 400 P Street, Sacramento. You can watch it in person, or view the live feed from your computer. It will also be posted on the CalPERS website, for later viewing. The forum is another way you can learn about the candidates before marking your ballot.
Another way you can learn about the candidates is to visit the Board Elections page on the CalPERS website, where you will find both written and video versions of the candidates’ statement that mirror those in your Candidate Statement Booklet. These will be available for viewing on September 1.
So exercise your civic duty and vote in the fall CalPERS Member-at-Large Board Election. Help choose the leadership that will make important decisions about your benefits and your future!
Vote for David Miller and Michael Bilbrey to make sure working people have a voice on the Board!
