Sign up for Berkeleyside's new arts & events newsletter. When no city council candidates receive 50% of first-choice votes,an instant-runoff process called ranked-choice votingcomes into play and votes are reallocated until the top candidate crosses the 50% threshold. The other would move in a different direction. Fiscal Year 2023-24 registration fees have been set and are due Monday, July 3, 2023. To count, it must bepostmarked on or before Election Day. Carole Marasovic, Stefan Elgstrand and Wendy Saenz Hood are running independently; Marasovic and Saenz Hood were candidates in the 2020 election and are using public financing. And during the pandemic, the rent board pushed for Berkeley to be one of the first jurisdictions to implement an eviction moratorium for all tenants even before the state did the same. Affordable Housing Guide | Remembering Gus Newport | From Kharkiv to Berkeley | Get The Scene, our new arts newsletter. Marasovic: There can be no healthy rental ecosystem when we have inequities in it. The rest of the candidates have raised between $1,350 and $1,850, plus matching funds. The other two candidates running independently of the tenants slate, Wendy Saenz Hood and Carole Marasovic, both opted into public financing and have each raised more than $2,400 as of Oct. 22. He raised half his funds from contributions averaging about $150, and the other half from a $7,500 loan he made to his campaign. It also incorrectly stated that Wendy Saenz Hood donated to Soli Alperts campaign. They are all using public financing. These services must continue during and after the moratorium. I want to help educate and incentivize those owners to open up their housing to others. Mendonca is vying for a city council seat in District 8, opened up by Councilmember Lori Drostes departure. The city attorney will bring back a revised version of the proposal with the amendments at the meeting on July 26. Elgstrand, who will remain a legislative assistant to Mayor Jesse Arregun, said he's worked in Berkeley government for nearly a decade, and he's confident the board will be able to make unified decisions even if opinions differ. Youll need a drivers license or state ID card, birth date, and Social Security Number. When the moratorium is lifted, the RSB Ordinance must be followed, while council continues to fund legal services to represent low-income tenants. Saenz Hood has $10,535 to spend on her campaign, $2,535 of which she has raised from 39 donors who contributed no more than $60. Most candidates in the election are critical of Costa-Hawkins and want it overturned. For the 2022 General Election, there were 149,011 registered voters and 96 precincts, which the county office consolidated into 59 polling locations. The pro-tenant slate pools its resources, nearly $50,000 altogether, to purchase advertisements on behalf of all five of its candidates making it the most powerful force in the race. In 12 years, Ive met with, touched and healed more than 10,000 Berkeleyans. Currently studying French on Duolingo at my leisure. Its an at-large race, meaning Berkeley residents can vote for five rent board members regardless of where they live in the city. In a race for five open seats on the Berkeley Rent Stabilization Board, three independent candidates are hoping to break up a slate of five that has been selected by the Berkeley Tenants Convention. Negeene Mosaed, who ran with the slate, didn't gain a position, and independent candidates Carole Marosovic and Wendy Saenz Hood were also unsuccessful. The League of Women Voters of Berkeley, Albany, Emeryville also hosted a forum for the candidates. Donate to Berkeleysideand support independent local journalism. We also worked with the Council to place Measure MM on the ballot expanding our rental registry to partially regulated units, which has brought the board valuable data that will inform our public policy and made rent board services available to many more Berkeley tenants. Alpert: In my time on the board I have been proud to advocate for expanding tenants protection laws to vulnerable renters, shine a light on inaction by the city in addressing unsafe housing conditions, and advance recommendations to council to use our zoning laws to benefit working people, not wealthy developers. Mosaed: Berkeleys rental system is not separate from the forces that dictate housing at a state and federal level. Each registration page has more information. Incumbent Joel Young and challenger Alfred Twu have diverging views on mask mandates, Line 80 and the bus agencys financial challenges. With effective and reliable communication, tenants in rent-controlled units and under Measure MM who face possible eviction will be kept informed so they are able to access necessary support and legal services. Berkeley City Council Places End Dates on COVID-19 Eviction Moratorium With 13 Berkeley races on the ballot, voters will have plenty of candidates to choose from during the 2022 election. Editors note: This story has been updated to clarify that $7,500 of the $15,000 Stefan Elgstrand raised came from a loan he made to his campaign. Your donation goes beyond supporting our journalism. The rent board oversees all properties in Berkeley that fall under rent control (including the new rent registry), sets the rent ceiling and provides resources and education for tenants and property owners of rentals in the city. Owners of partially exempt properties have to pay a fee and provide rental unit information (like tenancy numbers) so that the rent board can maintain inventory. The rent board asked the City Council to place a similar item on the ballot in 2020, but it was unsuccessful. Throughout the moratorium the board has offered counseling and referrals to services for small landlords who need help navigating the new environment, including connecting them with the state rental assistance program to pay rent debt. Candidates running for Rent Stabilization Board, top from left, Soli Alpert, Stefan Elgstrand, Carole Marasovic and Mosaed has $9,778 to spend on her campaign, $1,778 of which she has raised from 22 donors who contributed no more than $60. any of the 100 voting centers in Alameda County. This has no impact on corporate landlords so whats the point?. Theyve maxed out the citys matching funds for rent board candidates at $8,000, like all but one of the candidates. He has $15,057 to spend so far based on donations from 48 donors donating an average of $145 and a $7,500 loan he made to his campaign. On Nov. 8, Berkeley voters cast ballots for four City Council members, three school board directors, five rent board commissioners and a city auditor. They also decided on three local ballot proposals: Measure L, the largest-ever bond measure in city history; Measure M, a vacancy tax; and Measure N, an affordable housing measure. Here are some other helpful election resources: See complete 2022 election coverage on Berkeleyside. See a full list of candidate forums in Berkeley. Rented units in these buildings are not under the authority of the rent board, so the tenants do not have good cause eviction rights. Your donation goes beyond supporting our journalism. Ballot counting for the local ballot measures, City Council, school board, and rent board was completed on Nov. 21 at 9:17 p.m. Election night parties were held around Berkeley as results rolled in. As a parent, I know many parents and children have been struggling through the pandemic, and even before the pandemic, and believe there is an opening for the rent board to collaborate with the Berkeley Unified School District on an outreach program to educate Berkeley parents on resources available to them. The rent board will need to continue implementing dynamic practices so that rental housing business owners and tenants know their rights and responsibility under the moratorium. This shortage is not evenly distributed; we have built far less of our RHNA targets for middle- and low-income housing than for market-rate. Tenant-first slate maintains Berkeley rent board majority in election, Candidates backed by teachers union sweep Berkeley school board race, Rashi Kesarwani declares victory in District 1. Her work has appeared in The Oaklandside, The New York Times, Huffington Post and Washington Post, Her top donor zip code is in Central Berkeley. A handful of large corporations own a huge percentages of the citys rental units. They do not control the eviction moratorium (that is in the hands of the City Council), nor can they provide legal guidance on how to manage problems arising from the eviction moratorium. Whats next for Berkeleys streets and affordable housing after Measure L failed? Alpert: I am terrified of what will happen when the eviction moratorium ends. Martinac: I think the rent board is already doing a pretty good job, but there is always an opportunity to improve on existing processes. In person:If you prefer to cast your vote in person, you can do so atany of the 100 voting centers in Alameda County. You cantrack your ballot using this website. Berkeleyside wants to help you get to know your 2022 candidates for Berkeley City Council, school board, rent board and more. The rent board should launch outreach events timed to the move-in and move-out seasons, and clearly describe the powers of the board. The reporters and editors at Berkeleyside are dedicated to covering our city and providing you with the information you need to be an informed citizen. Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window), Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window), Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window), Berkeley golden duplex vote highlights conflicts between tenants and landlords, Berkeley homeowners fight arcane wording that could subject duplexes to rent control, Berkeley rent board wants voters to add rent control measures to certain duplexes and ADUs, Proudly powered by Newspack by Automattic. Latest news The Oaklandside Berkeley and Alameda County votes are completed Ballot counting for the local ballot measures, City Council, school board, and Elgstrand: No. For some individuals, such as seniors, they need to be reached through workshop presentations and coordinating with agencies that work with and advocate for them. Landlords need to be aware that they can not harass tenants. Marrero: No. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Nonprofit news. Beyond direct events, I believe an accessible public dashboard should be created to track major cases of negligence in addressing needed repairs and habitability issues. The Alameda County registrars office completed tallying votes Friday night. Affordable Housing Guide | Remembering Gus Newport | From Kharkiv to Berkeley | Get The Scene, our new arts newsletter. Her work has appeared in The Oaklandside, The New York Times, Huffington Post and Washington Post, Mosaed: Ive been a homeowner in Berkeley since 2011. Its the first year that candidates for rent board are eligible for the citys public financing system, which aims to limit the influence of money in Berkeley politics and give candidates with fewer resources a shot at winning. Stefan Elgstrand was the only candidate elected to the board who didnt run with the slate. Phone: (510) 981-7171. Arregun himself had to recuse himself because he lived in a golden duplex at the time. Many challenges lie ahead, and I wish to tackle them. The donor was Wendy Bloom, not Wendy Saenz Hood. We put together a guide to the essentials of how to register and vote, whats on the ballot, voters rights and more. WebNOVEMBER 8, 2022 GENERAL ELECTION Berkeley's voter-approved Public Financing Program allows certified candidates for Mayor, City Council, School Board, Rent Sign up for Berkeleyside's new arts & events newsletter. Tenant Protection Ordinance protects tenants from harassment by landlords.