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Justin Michael Drops Out of Santa Barbara Mayoral Race
Santa Barbara mayoral candidate Justin Michael announced Tuesday morning that he will no longer seek election to the post in November’s race.
Michael turned in 160 signatures but only 79 were validated, disqualifying him from a run, he told Noozhawk.
“Everyone told me they were registered,” he said, adding that many of the signatures came from Goleta residents or people living within Santa Barbara County limits, not Santa Barbara, forcing them to be disqualified.
Michael, who will turn 30 this month, was one of the youngest candidates in the mayoral race. The youngest candidate for the Santa Barbara City Council, Olivia Uribe, 24, withdrew her candidacy late last week.
As he met with people to gather signatures, Michael said he was surprised by how little most people knew about this fall’s election.
“I was shocked by how few people seemed to care and know about the race,” he said. “There’s an apathy at a municipal level. If you want to make a difference in this city, if you’re young and disempowered, it’s because you’re not voting.”
Michael said he takes everything in stride after his father, Reed Slatkin, was arrested in 2001 for running a Ponzi scheme of about $600 million. He said he also was dogged by a 2007 domestic violence case with a former co-worker and was sentenced to 75 days in Santa Barbara County Jail, 20 hours of community service and a year of counseling at Zona Seca.
Michael said he’s going to court Wednesday to have his record expunged, an event he said will mean a fresh start. “It’s tremendous closure,” he said. “I’ve come a long way. I want to reach out to people that want to change their lives.”
He said he supports John Thyne in his run for Santa Barbara City Council, but said he didn’t wish to comment on any of the other candidates. He said he’s going to put his focus back on some of the charity boards and nonprofits he worked with before launching his campaign.
He also said he’s not ruling out a future run for a City Council seat.
Although he wants younger people to get more involved in public service in Santa Barbara, Michael said he has been impressed with mayoral candidates and councilwomen Iya Falcone and Helene Schneider. “We need to respect our elders and their wisdom,” he said. “People like Iya and Helene have proven their experience.”
He added: “I truly entered this race with my heart in a paradigm of public service. This is just a little bump. I’m going to keep reaching for the stars in Santa Barbara and beyond.”
— Noozhawk staff writer Lara Cooper can be reached at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).
Comments
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» on 08.11.09 @ 02:26 PM
As another of the younger/fresher/less experienced/less polished/less jaded candidates drops out of the race, the prospects increase for another dull candidates’ debate on Friday. Oh well.
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» on 08.11.09 @ 02:45 PM
That photo may be of a “supporter” but you fail to tell the audience that it is also his business partner and campaign manager.
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» on 08.11.09 @ 02:48 PM
and the entire city goes yawn, thank goodness he has his domestic battery hobby to fall back on.
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» on 08.11.09 @ 03:50 PM
Good riddance to this parasite on our city. Truly a waste of space.
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» on 08.11.09 @ 04:13 PM
Thank you to the staff of Noozhawk for excellence in newsmaking. A truly impartial source, I salute you! Everyone, please rock the vote! - jmike! yes the real one!
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» on 08.11.09 @ 04:23 PM
Michael said he has been impressed with ... councilwomen Iya Falcone and Helene Schneider. “We need to respect our elders and their wisdom,” he said. “People like Iya and Helene have proven their experience.”
That statement would have disqualified him for Mayor anyway…who in their right mind is impressed unless they are too young and naive to see where these two clowns and their colleagues have taken us? That’s exactly why we need some CHANGE.
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» on 08.11.09 @ 05:12 PM
The Curse of JMIKE! strikes JMIKE! too. “Justin JMike Michael invites you to support and vote for John Thyne and Olivia Uribe for City Council.” The Justin Michael, Olivia Uribe & John Thyne slate is almost completely obliterated.
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» on 08.11.09 @ 05:22 PM
Hey, give him a break. I didn’t support his candidacy, but at least he made an effort and did attend some meetings. That’s more than the rest of us commentators did. He’s absolutely right about the apathy and it is shameful, shameful of young AND old.
Hopefully, he learned to be a bit more serious about what is a serious job, should he choose to run again.
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» on 08.11.09 @ 05:29 PM
John Thyne is an honest man. Actions speak louder than words.
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» on 08.11.09 @ 05:35 PM
Fantastic sir, simply fantastic. Kudos!
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» on 08.11.09 @ 06:57 PM
To bad his campaign manager - also the supporter in the picture - didn’t give him more direction on where to go and get the correct amount of signatures.
With months to get signatures, only getting 79 proves that there was no strategy.
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» on 08.11.09 @ 07:40 PM
Dear Das: John Thyne is a drunkard who should drop out. It is a joke and an insult that he stays in. Your seeming support for him, assuming it was truly you who left the comment, shows poor judgement on your part, also.
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» on 08.11.09 @ 10:24 PM
He did not “drop out” of the election race, which means it was his choice. What happened is that he failed to qualify for the ballot because he did not know to check the names and addresses on his list by first spending $28 to buy the latest list of registered voters from the county elections office.
If he wants to get involved in city government, the events and festivals committee probably has a vacancy soon.
The candidates had four weeks to get the names on their nomination forms. The period started in early July and ended yesterday, Monday.
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» on 08.11.09 @ 11:06 PM
It was a good run JMIKE….we almost made it but fell a lil short….maybe next time….
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» on 08.12.09 @ 07:23 AM
I am impartial about Thyne, but getting a DUI does not make one a “drunkard” - it makes someone who exercised poor judgment. A few glasses of wine with dinner is something that is done by other than “drunkards”. The city would have few who are not drunkards if that is the definition you apply. True, he should not have driven, but the BAC is so low now it is difficult to not be considered “drunk” if you have one or two once in a while. I am sure the comment was not left by the real Das, but it is possible to be an honest man and also have a couple glasses of wine.
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» on 08.12.09 @ 07:45 AM
Dear Das,
I do believe that you accepted an award for being an ‘outstanding latino’ , but you are not a latino, correct? Since you say ‘actions speak louder than words’ what does that say about you, Das?
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» on 08.12.09 @ 08:34 AM
John Thyne the drunken driver now has the endorsement of JMike, the convicted felong woman beater and Das Williams the pseudo Latin, spend first ask questions later City Councilmember. Hilarious! What a group of winners….NOTTTTTT
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» on 08.12.09 @ 09:10 AM
Santa Barbara deserves better than this bottom feeder debate. All of these candidates with past and pending criminal cases should get out of the race. It’s all a big distraction. As far as Das supporting Thyne (should that big mistake actually happen)- it would be all about contributions to Das from Thynes financial backers - Ray and his brother. How low can this go - we’ll see.
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» on 08.12.09 @ 10:02 AM
Re 3Fun: Fwiw, Ray Mahoob has given $10,000 to Thyne, by 6/30 and $3,800 to Das Williams (dwarfed by the more than $16,000 from the Sperlings). I don’t know who Ray’s brother is.
For city reports: http://cal-access.sos.ca.gov/Campaign/Committees/Detail.aspx?id=1316591&view=received&session=2009"href =“http://www.netfile.com/agency/csb/”> here </a>; for state reports: <a ] here [/url]; Susan Jordan’s is also available on the same site.
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» on 08.12.09 @ 10:44 AM
Indeed. “brother” refers to Thyne’s brother (20K contribution). So we’ll see how much it’s going to cost Ray etc… to get that endorsement of Thyne from Das. Better be worth it for Das to be able to hold his nose and do that…
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» on 08.12.09 @ 07:33 PM
Hahahahahh! Was there any doubt he wouldn’t drop out?
He was shocked by how little people cared? No “JMike”, we just didn’t give a rat’s behind for you. That’s all.
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» on 08.12.09 @ 11:22 PM
John Thyne is a drunken loser.
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» on 08.13.09 @ 11:43 AM
He’s famous forever in Santa Barbara now. The kid is a PR genius. It goes without saying that one mastermind begets another. It’s a shame though, he is still the best candidate for lasting change in SB Politics.
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» on 08.13.09 @ 12:27 PM
This guy is such a joke.
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» on 08.13.09 @ 08:21 PM
No, its Das who is the Joke!
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» on 08.15.09 @ 08:56 AM
“I truly entered this race with my heart in a paradigm of public service.”
That sort of nonsensitive, trying (um, “endeavoring?”) to sound brighter than you are, is reason enough to be disqualified!
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» on 08.16.09 @ 02:25 AM
Who is Justin Michael?
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» on 08.17.09 @ 10:10 PM
Justin Michael, Justin Tevis, and Tevis Togs. It’s your choice.
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» on 09.12.09 @ 08:59 PM
Justin, I’m sorry to hear you dropped out of the election. You are an amazing person with so much potential. Now it’s time to redirect your focus. Please call or email me. Love & Light
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