Dear East Bay Express:

After a vote of the Steering Committee, The Berkeley Tenants Union sent this letter to the East Bay Express on Thursday, October 9.

Jacquelyn McCormick is endorsed by the Berkeley Tenants Union because she is the only District 8 candidate to unequivocally support renters rights.

D8 candidate Mike Cohen just told the Berkeley Property Owners Association that he supports “means testing” – taking away rent control for anyone the government decides isn’t poor enough. Although we were impressed by candidate George Beier at our September 21 endorsements meeting when he cited specific occasions in which he had assisted renters in his neighborhood, Beier also told the landlords that he would consider means testing.

Your pick, Lori Droste, showed she is not ready for prime time by writing that she “would like to have more information on the ordinance” when asked if she supports rent control. If you don’t have knowledge about tenant protections in a city where 62% are renters, you should not serve on the City Council.

Rent control prevents speculators from making obscene profits and allows those without high incomes to live here long enough to become part of our community. Jacquelyn McCormick is only the “most conservative candidate” for District 8 if, by conservative, you mean that she wants Berkeley to remain an economically and socially diverse city.

See candidate’s responses to questions from BTU and Berkeley Citizens Action here:
https://www.berkeleytenants.org/?p=1145

East Bay Express: Vote Campbell Washington, Droste, Maio, Worthington, and Echols
“But we strongly oppose candidate Jacquelyn McCormick, because she backs Measure R and is the most conservative candidate running for Berkeley City Council this year.”
http://www.eastbayexpress.com/oakland/vote-campbell-washington-droste-maio-worthington-and-echols/Content?oid=4092084