We have few candidates but plenty of reasons why

Meanwhile, politics has become blood sport. Gone are the days when men like Sens. John McCain and Joe Lieberman were honest-to-goodness friends despite political differences. Today’s political role models are often fringe players with more conniptions than convictions.

As a result, fewer people seem to be interested in participating in civic affairs, and exasperation over national politics has a way of trickling down. At least these are reasonable conclusions after looking at the roster of candidates that stepped forward for local elections on the coast. There are as many uncontested races as there are those offering beleaguered voters a choice.

Only one candidate filed the requisite paperwork to run for Pacifica City Council in District 3. If you would like to hear candidates debate what’s best for the city’s school children, you are out of luck. There are a total of six seats up for election in the Jefferson Union High School and Pacifica School districts. Only the incumbents stepped forward, so, like it or not, expect more of the same.

Forced district elections were supposed to address the problem, among others, by making it less expensive and less onerous to run in a single neighborhood rather than a more sprawling district. We’re still waiting for that success.

For Pacifica voters, it’s no different at the North Coast County Water District and the San Mateo County Harbor District. One candidate, no choice.

At least for local elections, there may be factors beyond poison politics at the root of this problem.

▸ Elective office is a big commitment. This was always true to one extent or another, but governance has never been more complex, particularly in a coastal zone buffeted by rocky economic conditions.

▸ The pandemic may have made it worse. The technological marvels that make it possible to work and govern from home have been a godsend. Zoom, Slack and a dozen other communication tools have kept us all safe and working for years now. They have also brought longer glitch-filled meetings that lack the camaraderie of a community brought together in one room. (See Grace Scullion’s story this week revealing longer, later, local government meetings.)

▸ Social media has definitely made it worse. Simply put, who wants to come home from work on a Monday night and spend the next six hours in front of your computer only to be disparaged on Nextdoor the next day?

The candidates who did step forward to run for local office deserve our attention and admiration. Most, if not all, of them are seeking thankless positions for all the right reasons. We wish there were more of them and a more vigorous debate of local issues. Maybe next time.

— Clay Lambert