By Andrew Bowen

Measures K and L on the November ballot would represent the most fundamental change to San Diego election rules since the establishment of aninth City Council district in 2010.

Both measures are an attempt to shift power from the low-turnout June elections, which coincide with the California primaries, to the November general elections. Measure K would require November runoffs between the top two candidates in races for City Council, city attorney and mayor. Currently those candidates can win outright in June if they get more than 50 percent of the vote.

Measure L would require all citizens' initiatives and referenda to be voted on in November, unless the City Council takes special action to vote on them earlier.

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Join us and hundreds of people this Saturday, October 15th, as we walk the streets of San Diego. We will be talking to voters about Measures K&L in the city of San Diego! These measures ensure that big decisions are made when the most people vote, which is in November. Democracy works best when the most people participate and that is in November. We are looking for volunteers to help us create a more inclusive democracy in San Diego, so let’s go for a walk and talk to our friends and neighbors! If you’d like to volunteer, please contact Diamond Wallace at[email protected] or 619-269-1823.

By Pam Kragen

Family and community members gathered Saturday to remember Alfred Olango, the unarmed black man killed in an El Cajon officer-involved shooting, and to call for unity against similar shootings.

After a private funeral and burial, more than 150 people gathered in City Heights to mourn Olango, 38, who was remembered as a cheerful man of peace who helped others in times of need.

“This is a painful time, a grieving time,” said Walter Lam, president of Alliance for African Assistance, a San Diego refugee aid organization. “All I can say is, we are all in it together. What we will do in our power is to push for justice to be done.

“We want whoever is responsible for this (shooting) to face justice.”

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Most of the Measures on this year’s San Diego City ballot are non-controversial. Measures E through I and Measure M were all placed on the ballot by the City Council and involve everything from a Charter amendment to reforming the process for removal of public officials to an increase in capacity for subsidized affordable housing.

The five measures that have attracted attention in this “year of the lengthy ballot,” are the Chargers’ Initiative (Measure C), the Citizens’ Tourism Initiative (Measure D), two Election Reform proposals (Measures K & L), and a Marijuana tax and regulation plan (Measure N).

Measures K and L sparked controversy at the City Council when proposed by the Independent Voter Project a (co publishers of IVN.us), the labor community and Alliance San Diego. Councilman Chris Cate objected to what he viewed as a rush to the ballot and both measures were qualified on one-vote margins.

Read the full article here.