Some Candidates, But Not All, Pledge to Defend Democracy
In response to publicly stated concerns about the role of money from shadowy sources in elections, the Cuyahoga County Progressive Caucus in Beachwood asked all candidates for the Beachwood City Council and the Board of Education to take the Defense of Democracy Pledge which commits them “to publicly disavow all funded efforts to influence the results of an election that do not disclose the donor or the source of the money.” Eight of thirteen candidates have taken the pledge so far, including all of the city council candidates.
Concern about the issue of undisclosed money arose during a Beachwood School Board Candidate Forum hosted by the Cuyahoga County Progressive Caucus at the Beachwood Branch of the Cuyahoga County Public Library on September 19th. Before the forty-five gathered in attendance, a question from the audience drew attention to the American Policy Coalition’s anonymously funded ad campaign in Beachwood. The ad campaign sought to influence the vote on a local school levy in 2018. The question from the audience asked the candidates at the forum to take a pledge against what has been termed “dark money” because of the secretive nature of the funding source.
The American Policy Coalition is a Montana-based organization. In media coverage, its ad campaign was not supported by leaders on either side of the levy debate. Outside interference in a local matter was seen as polluting the electoral waters.
Despite what would seem an uncontroversial moral stand to take, two candidates for the Board of Education have not taken the pledge: Tiffanie Broadbent and Kareen Caputo.
Defense of Democracy Pledge
We, the undersigned, vow to publicly disavow all funded efforts to influence the results of an election that do not disclose the donor or the source of the money. In a time when large sums of money are spent by individuals and corporations to create lopsided electoral playing fields, we take a firm stand against those who would corrupt our democracy with secretive donations that mask and hide their undue influence. Regardless of the candidate, we publicly reject any ads in the form of mailings, social media, radio, television, or print that are paid for with money that cannot be traced to its source. Accountability depends upon transparency, and we pledge to defend our democracy.
Justin Berns, Candidate for Beachwood City Council
Mike Burkons, Candidate for Beachwood City Council
Barbara Bellin Janovitz, Candidate for Beachwood City Council
Brian Linick, Candidate for Beachwood City Council
June Taylor, Candidate for Beachwood City Council
Jillian DeLong, Candidate for Beachwood Board of Education
Dawann Gray, Candidate for Beachwood Board of Education
Marla Hart, Candidate for Beachwood Board of Education
Richard Loeb, Candidate for Beachwood Board of Education
Joshua Mintz, Candidate for Beachwood Board of Education
Megan Walsh, Candidate for Beachwood Board of Education
