The Altadena town council election committee has announced that it will hold "pre-election" polling on the evening of Tues., June 7, at the community room of the Altadena Main Library, 600 E. Mariposa St. Voting hours will be from 5-9 PM.
Election Committee Chair Eric Pierce said in an email that the committee felt that this was an important step in improving community participation in the town council elections, which have traditionally been held on Saturday. “This had been an issue for quite awhile, because the election occurs at a very busy time for many people. June is a popular time for vacations, graduations and of course, weddings. We’re also aware that many members of the community have religious convictions that don’t allow them to participate on a Saturday.”
The regular election day will be Sat., June 11.
The major hurdle for the election committee was to work out what to do with the ballot box between Tuesday and Saturday. Banks with secure lockups weren’t feasible, since they would already be closed at 9:00 pm when the poll closed, and may not be open when ballot counting commences at 3 PM Saturday afternoon.
That problem was solved when Capt. Steven McLean of the Altadena Sheriff’s Station agreed to lock up the sealed ballot box in an unused jail cell. “We don’t book people at the Altadena station, so the cells are only used for storage, ” according to Det. Lt. Joe Dempsey.
Potential candidates have until 5 PM Tues., May 10, to submit their packet to the Altadena Community Center, 730 E. Altadena Dr.
