Camejo's Debate Strategy

At the County Council meeting today, Peter Camejo discussed his strategy for participating in the League of Women Voters-sponsored gubernatorial debate. Camejo was widely praised for his performance in the recall election debates, and access to televised debates is crucial for a third-party campaign.

Here are the inclusion criteria the League of Women Voters have adopted for their debate in the California governor's race this year:

In order to participate in an LWVCEF forum or debate, a candidate for statewide office in the November 2006 general election must meet all of the following criteria:

* The candidate must be eligible for the office according to the Constitution of the State of California and the Constitution of the United States of America.

* The candidate must be a legally qualified candidate for the office sought, as defined by California law.

* The candidate must have made a public announcement of his or her candidacy.

* The candidate must show evidence that a formal campaign is being waged.

* The candidate must demonstrate sufficient voter interest and support, as evidenced by receipt of at least ten percent support in a specified statewide nonpartisan public opinion poll that includes all candidates for the office, conducted not less than 14 or more than 40 days prior to the debate.

Federal law prohibits the inclusion or exclusion of any candidate from a debate based solely on party affiliation.

Camejo plans to commission a poll of California voters to tackle the final criterion above. Since this criterion only says "voter interest and support" and "at least ten percent support", Camejo believes that a poll that asks, "which of these candidates would you support to be included in the polls?" would qualify, even if it allows voters to select more than one candidate. This greatly improves his odds of achieving more than ten percent in the poll.

If the League of Women Voters does not accept Camejo's poll (which he plans to co-sponsor with the Libertarians), he plans legal action to contest their decision.

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