Ready For An Exciting 2024: General Meeting Feb. 1!

Back in Action!

Date: Thursday, February 1st

Time: 6:00 pm

Location: PB Recreation Center (1405 Diamond St, San Diego, CA 92109)

On Thursday, February 1st, we will hear from the 2024 San Diego mayoral candidates (Dems only), vote on endorsements in judicial races for the San Diego Superior Court and learn about Power San Diego's efforts to provide an alternative to SDG&E: A non-for-profit public utility company.

Meeting Highlights:

San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria
Former public defender and candidate for mayor Geneviéve Jones-Wright
Discussion and Vote on endorsements for Jodi Cleesattle & Koryn Sheppard for Judge 2024
Mark Hughes of Power San Diego - Mark will speak to us regarding efforts to place a measure on the November, 2024 ballot to establish a public utility company and save San Diegans money while using renewable energy.
Action Challenge: Send postcards to voters in support GOTV efforts in the special election in George Santos' old seat - NY03

QUICK REMINDER: It is that time again. If you haven't already paid your 2024 PBDC membership dues, please use the link: Join or renew your membership today.

Please don't hesitate to Email us if you have any questions.

Questions for the 2024 San Diego Mayoral Candidates?

Mayor Todd Gloria & candidate for mayor Genevieve Jones-Wright will address the Pacific Beach Democratic Club. Due to the packed agenda, please submit questions via the Club email no later than January 31. We will get to as many questions as possible and move on to questions during the meeting if time allows.

Jodi Cleesattle & Koryn Sheppard for Judge 2024: The Pacific Beach Democratic Club will hear from candidates Jodi Cleesattle and Koryn Sheppard for San Diego County Superior Court Judge. Please see below for more information on each candidate. Following a question and answer period, the Club will vote on whether to endorse these one or both candidates.

Eligibility to Vote in Endorsement

You are a member in good standing with eligibility to vote if you have paid your membership dues 30 days in advance and have attended at least 2 of the last 18 general meetings of the PBDC. If you have any questions regarding your eligibility to vote, please contact the PBDC Board.

In accordance with our bylaws, member votes will be accepted via email. No proxy voting is permitted. Members may vote via email at any time prior to 6:00 p.m. PST on January 31, 2024 (24 hours before the start of the general membership meeting).

We do need a quorum in order to hold both of the endorsement votes for the judicial seats. Please attend this meeting in person!

JODI CLEESATTLE for SAN DIEGO COUNTY SUPERIOR COURT JUDGE, SEAT 41

odi Cleesattle is a career trial attorney, a dedicated public servant representing the State of California, and an active community volunteer.

Jodi is running for judge because she is a longtime advocate for equal justice and equal access to justice. She believes it’s critical that our judges approach all cases with an open mind, that they carefully consider the law and facts in every case, that they consciously work to overcome their implicit biases, and that they treat all people who come before the court with dignity and respect. These are principles she has applied throughout her legal career.

Jodi has been a trial lawyer for 30 years. She spent the first half of her career in private practice and was a partner at a national law firm. For the last 17 years, she has been with the California Department of Justice, where she is the Senior Assistant Attorney General supervising the Tort and Condemnation Section statewide. She has tried cases in state and federal court and has addressed complex areas of law throughout her career.

She is active in the legal community in San Diego and statewide, currently serving as President of California Women Lawyers as well as co-president of the Tom Homann LGBTQ+ Law Association. She is a founding member of the San Diego Unity Bar, a network of local diverse bar associations, and she previously has served on the boards of the San Diego County Bar Association and Lawyers Club of San Diego.

Jodi also has a long history of volunteering to help the most vulnerable in our community – working to help incarcerated women prepare for their transition back into the community, to help incarcerated teens develop a love of reading, and cooking meals once a month for the Rachel’s House women’s shelter.

She is the proud mom of two young adult children, three dogs, and two cats, and she lives in the Kensington neighborhood.

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KORYN SHEPPARD for SAN DIEGO COUNTY SUPERIOR COURT JUDGE, SEAT 4

My name is Koryn Sheppard, and I proudly stand as the sole Democratic candidate for Office 43 of the San Diego County Superior Court Judge.

In my 15-year career as a family law attorney, I have become a board-certified family law specialist. Additionally, I serve as an Adjunct Professor at Thomas Jefferson School of Law, specializing in teaching California Civil Procedure. I am deeply involved in the legal community, volunteering my time as Minor’s Counsel and Discovery Referee. I volunteer and provide low cost and pro-bono services and I have been active on the east county bar association board of directors, and family law bar association board of directors and a mentor for the Lawyers Club. Recently, I had the honor of having an article published in San Diego Lawyer Magazine, focusing on military family law.

San Diego has 27 family law courtrooms, yet only 6 bench officers have practiced family law. Given the complex nature of family law and its far-reaching impact, it is imperative to have judges with substantial family law experience. The absence of court reporters in family law cases, coupled with a rising number of self-represented litigants, non-native English speakers, and abuse victims, underscores the need for experienced judges to make informed decisions for families.

The demand for family law practitioners to step into judicial roles is pressing. This has motivated me to run for judge, with the aim of contributing my experience and expertise to the family law community and the county of San Diego.

I am honored to be endorsed by prominent Democratic clubs, including San Diego County Democratic Party, Democrats for Equality, U City Dems, Fallbrook Democratic Club, Clairemont Democratic Club, Pacific Islander Democratic Club, and many others.

Ballot Initiative for Power San Diego

Power San Diego is a community-led initiative in the City of San Diego, proposing to replace SDGE with a not-for-profit public pow er utility within the city’s limits. As a Public Utility, Power San Diego promises to reduce energy rates, safeguard rooftop solar installations, and focus on local energy generation and storage.

Why is Power San Diego Talking with the PBDC? Power San Diego's goal is to place a measure on the November, 2024 ballot to establish a public utility company and save us all money while using renewable energy.

How will this Public Utility be Financed? Power San Diego would be financed by a municipal revenue bond that would pay SDGE for the assessed value of about $2.3 Billion… a cost of about 2 cents Kw/H over 30 years. This is a small fraction of the 48 cents Kw/H we are already paying. Power San Diego explains that taxpayers and rate payers will save the range of 20% in the short-term and $20 billion by 2042 on the avoided profits to SDGE.

SPEAKER - MARK HUGHES OF POWER SAN DIEGO

Mark Hughes graduated from Kansas State University in 1978 with a degree in Mechanical Engineering. He went on to spend his career in the power generation industry, working for both equipment manufacturers and, for a few years, at Kansas City Power & Light, an investor-owned utility. Toward the end of his career, he worked for Solar Turbines, here in San Diego. He retired several years ago, though still provides consulting services to the power industry on a very part time basis.

In addition to volunteering his efforts for the Power San Diego campaign, he and his wife work to help bring Monarch butterflies back from the edge of extinction.

See you soon!

Your 2024 E-Board