SLO County church publishes voter guide after sending out surveys. Here’s what it said
A string of church groups distributed political surveys to San Luis Obispo County candidates ahead of the November election — and the answers to one group’s surveys were recently released.
Equippers Church of Arroyo Grande — one of four local church groups to distribute questionnaires — asked candidates in San Luis Obispo, Grover Beach, Arroyo Grande and Pismo Beach about their views on issues ranging from marriage rights to abortion access.
The included candidates are running for offices spanning from school boards to city government.
Though many chose not to participate, the answers for candidates who did respond to the survey espoused predominately conservative views on issues like book bans, voting regulations and Second Amendment rights.
In particular, candidates running for seats on the Lucia Mar and San Luis Coastal school district boards were asked to weigh in on issues outside the purview of their jurisdictions, such as abortion.
So far, Equippers is the only group The Tribune found to have released their survey results publicly.
The group’s full published results can be found under a “Voter Guide” tab on the Equippers website.
“This voter guide never tells you how to vote but only provides the candidates’ positions on various issues, in their own words,” read a statement on the church’s website.
Further down the page, the group included a Bible verse reading: “When the righteous increase, the people rejoice, but when the wicked rule, the people groan.”
The group also linked to a presidential voting guide and a document titled “Voting in America as a Christian” that lists various Bible verses organized by topic such as “Boundaries/Borders/Walls,” “Identity and Marriage” and “Role of Parents.”
School board candidates share opinions on book removal, abortion
Paul Bischoff, Mike Fuller and Paul Hively — a trio of candidates attempting to oust three incumbent Lucia Mar Unified School District trustee candidates this November — responded to the political questionnaire distributed by Equippers.
The incumbent candidates — Don Stewart, Vicki Meagher and Dee Santos — did not respond to the survey.
Meagher told The Tribune she chose not to respond because she felt the questions didn’t apply to her race and were too political.
“The school board has always been nonpartisan,” she told The Tribune via email. “These questions are not applicable to a school board position.”
Eve Hinton, who is once again running for a seat on the San Luis Coastal Unified School District board where she has served since 2020, also responded to the questionnaire. Hinton’s opponent, Erica Flores Baltodano, did not respond.
Bischoff, Fuller, Hively and Hinton’s answers reveal conservative views on some hot-button education — and non-education — issues.
In the survey, all four said they supported “removing books and materials that contain pervasive vulgarity or explicit sexual content from school libraries.”
The topic of book removals has gained momentum on local school boards in recent years.
In 2023, a protest was held outside of the Arroyo Grande High School campus, where some protesters expressed concerns about alleged “pornographic” content in books in the school library. The books in question included LGBTQ+ characters and content.
The candidates also said they supported requiring school staff to notify parents if their child identifies “with a gender different from their biological sex” — a stance that diverges with a state law set to take effect in January 2025.
Starting in January, AB 1955 will prevent districts from requiring staff to disclose a student’s sexual orientation or gender identity to their parents without the student’s consent. The law, known as the “Support Academic Futures and Educators for Today’s Youth Act,” was signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom in July.
The school board candidates also said they were opposed to “allowing students to access restrooms, locker rooms and showers based on gender identity or expression” and allowing transgender girls to participate on girls’ sports teams.
Candidates opposed diversity, equity and inclusion policies and policies requiring students to receive COVID vaccinations and wear masks, according to survey results.
The candidates also weighed in on a issues outside the traditional purview of a school board.
When asked to explain their stances on abortion, most candidates said they opposed it and likened it to murder.
“I’m against it, as the fetus is a human, and ending a pregnancy is killing a human,” Bischoff wrote.
Hinton wrote that she is “totally opposed to murdering children in the womb.” Hively also responded that he believed abortion is murder.
Fuller diverged slightly from the other candidates, saying he was against most abortions, with one exception — when “a mother with other children would be determined by doctors that she would die giving birth to another child.”
Abortion rights are legislated by the state government and abortion access is currently protected under the state constitution.
Bischoff, Fuller, Hively and Hinton did not respond to a Tribune request for comment.
Who responded to church voter guide survey in Arroyo Grande?
Equippers also sent its survey to candidates running for Arroyo Grande, Grover Beach, Pismo Beach and San Luis Obispo city councils.
In Arroyo Grande, mayoral candidate Gaea Powell responded to the survey while Mayor Caren Ray Russom, who is running for reelection, did not.
The only City Council candidate to respond was Marlea Harmon, who is running for District 3. Her opponent, Jamie Maraviglia, and District 2 candidate Aileen Loe both did not respond to the survey.
In the survey, both Powell and Harmon said they supported requiring voters to show government-issued photo identification at the polls and the tradition of allowing prayers at the start of city meetings.
When asked how they interpret the Second Amendment, the two candidates said they stand against regulations.
“The second amendment is critical to protect citizens’ liberties and freedom,” Powell wrote. “It empowers we the people to defend ourselves from foreign threats including government tyranny.”
Harmon said “the right is fundamental to our American values.”
“I do not support any regulation that places a limit on this right, Harmon said.
What did Grover Beach candidates say in church survey?
In Grover Beach, mayoral candidates Debbie Peterson and Robert Robert both completed the survey, but opponent Kassi Dee did not.
Kathy McCorry was the only Grover Beach City Council candidate to complete the survey.
Marsha Bolyanatz and Clint Weirick did not respond to The Tribune’s requests to comment, but appear to have not answered the questionnaire, according to the published voter guide.
Both Robert and McCorry said they supported using invocations to start city meetings, while Peterson did not respond to that question.
Robert and Peterson then said they would support enhanced security at the border, while McCorry did not respond to that question.
All three candidates said they supported recreational marijuana dispensaries within city limits.
Who responded to survey sent to SLO City Council, mayor candidates?
In San Luis Obispo, mayoral candidate Donald Hedrick and City Council candidate Felicia Lewis responded to the questionnaire.
Mayoral candidate Erica A. Stewart and City Council candidates John Drake and Jan Marx told The Tribune they received a survey but did not complete it. City Council candidate Mike Boswell did not respond to The Tribune’s requests for comment but did not appear to have answered the questionnaire.
Both Hedrick and Lewis answered that they support requiring voters to show government-issued identification at the polls.
When asked for his interpretation on the Second Amendment, Hedrick responded that he supports “well intended private militia intended on respecting our constitutional rights” and “citizens coming together for common interests of steering government policies and tyranny.”
Hedrick commented that criminal use of firearms is “a problem to work on.”
Lewis said she supports smart gun technology, but said she is not voting for anyone who wants to repeal her “right to bear arms.”
None of the Pismo Beach City Council or mayoral candidates appear to have responded to the Equippers questionnaire. Marcia Guthrie told The Tribune she received a survey and choose not to respond.
None of the other candidates immediately responded to The Tribune’s request for comment.
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