Special Election brings threat and opportunity to OCEA members

Dear OCEA member,

OCEA Stewards, Board members or staff will never tell you how to vote. That’s not what our union is about. We do, however, have an obligation to inform you and your coworkers as to why particular candidates or issues deserve your support or opposition. We believe it is our duty to let you know when a particular candidate or issue puts your rights and job security in jeopardy.

The upcoming March 9 special election for District 2 Board of Supervisors is just such a case. Former Supervisor and defeated former State Senator John Moorlach wants his old District 2 seat back and we can’t let him have it. Moorlach’s persistent attacks on your pensions is a wedge issue he uses to turn the public against its own workers.

Here’s what former OCEA General Manager Nick Berardino had to say about Moorlach and pensions. "John Moorlach has often targeted the jobs of hard-working public servants like you for outsourcing. He (Moorlach) has used the pension issue as political leverage that until now has been steeped in hypocrisy,” Berardino said. “He has tried to fool the public that he is somehow a pension reformer when in fact he has been taking money from the public to fund his own private pension plan.” OC Register, June 27, 2013.

Moorlach’s “Do as I say, not as I do,” attitude was also on display in this article from July 19, 2013, in the Voice of OC. These attacks on public workers go beyond partisan politics and strike at the heart of public service by lowering wages and benefits paid for our work and then enriching corporate CEOs. 

Fortunately, this dire threat to our retirement security also comes with an opportunity to elect a solid local government expert to the Board of Supervisors. For OCEA members, both the choice and the opportunity are clear: We endorse Costa Mesa Mayor Katrina Foley, who has stood by our members’ side for the past decade. She has fought tirelessly to restore takeaways imposed by City Council members allied with John Moorlach. Katrina is also a successful small business owner with experience as a school board trustee, city council member and mayor. 

The 2nd District includes Costa Mesa, Newport Beach, Huntington Beach, Seal Beach, La Palma, Cypress, Los Alamitos, Stanton, and parts of Fountain Valley and Buena Park. If you live in the District or have family and friends who do, it’s critical that you vote in this election and encourage others to do so. You can volunteer to stop Moorlach here!

Voting begins NEXT WEEK in the March 9 Special Election for District 2 Board of Supervisors!

A vote for Katrina Foley is a vote for the future. We have had enough of the past.

In Solidarity,

Lezlee Neebe
OCEA President

Publication Date: February 5, 2021