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much. I'll hopefully turn in a little bit better outlines with what proportional <br />representation is and those of you who wish, could contact me. <br />RAY: Just once again to point out, all we do is suggest amendments that would <br />go before the public. We wouldn't change anything. This body doesn't have that <br />power, okay? The public does. You do, as a voter. <br />BOB JACOBSON: <br />I realize that. But certainly the weight of this many people making <br />suggestions and then having elections and actually putting your recommendations <br />directly into printed form before the voters, carries considerable weight and you have to <br />admit that. <br />RAY: Okay, questions? Mr. Santangelo. <br />SANTANGELO: <br />I was interested in the comment on nonpartisan because I know while I <br />was on the Council, that came up several times and you talk, say I'm a republican, you <br />talk with a republican, oh, dear Lord, you can't do that. One of the things that intrigues <br />me about that and I'd ask you for your input and I was a little surprised by your <br />opposition of that, was we were often saying, in terms of the present Mayor, he didn't <br />have a majority and these elections didn't win by a majority. Well, in a nonpartisan, <br />anybody could get into the primary but the two major vote collectors moves into a <br />general if no one gets 50% and then you have a clear majority winner. How do you <br />address that? What's your feeling? <br />BOB JACOBSON: <br />Well actually, if you look at the nonpartisan races across the United <br />States, there's almost as many different kind of nonpartisan races as there are forms of <br />government so there's not any one particular kind. Your point's well taken. I looked at <br />the first, when I thought about nonpartisan elections, I thought this is an easy solution <br />to things but as you delve into it a little more deeper, other factors come up like <br />campaign donations and funding and the parties are still there and they will still be <br />supporting certain candidates in those power blocs that you all well know exist, are <br />going to be doing the back room support and those efforts that actually usually involve <br />a lot of money, quite honestly because we all know how much these campaigns cost so <br />it isn't quite as simple as that because initially when I first heard of nonpartisan <br />elections, I went "hey, great" but actually learn as much as you can about them and it's <br />not such an easy fix as one might think and I don't know how each of you feel about it <br />but certainly delve into it a little more deep than just looking at the surface of it because <br />there are some complicated aspects of it. <br />RAY: Ms. Herkes has a question. <br />11 <br />