SLO County board seemed poised to defy logic. Then this supervisor delivered a shocker

What a day.

During Tuesday’s emotionally fraught Board of Supervisors meeting, Dawn Ortiz-Legg almost broke down in tears, Debbie Arnold imperiously reprimanded a group of volunteers for not doing her bidding, and John Peschong invited the public to rip him to shreds if they don’t like his decision.

But in the end, it was Supervisor Lynn Compton who delivered the biggest stunner. Her “no” vote saved the day — at least for now.

Compton usually votes with fellow conservatives Arnold and Peschong. Not this time. She opposed Arnold’s motion to interview additional candidates for the key post of county clerk-recorder, which has been vacant ever since Tommy Gong resigned in July.

The appointment has been closely watched by the community, since the clerk-recorder plays such a big role in how elections are run, and Republicans across the nation have been angling to put conservatives in state and local election offices.

Compton’s no vote means the original three finalists for the clerk-recorder position will be the only ones interviewed by the Board of Supervisors on Oct. 12.

That was the correct decision — one that should start putting to rest the assumption that the conservative board majority will cherry-pick a partisan clerk-recorder, even if the candidate isn’t up to the job.

But save those sighs of relief; there’s still no guarantee that one of the three well-qualified finalists will be appointed.

Possibility of more interviews

If the board can’t agree on one of the three, that could open the door to interviewing more candidates, including attorney Stew Jenkins, who has represented Compton in the past.

If that were to happen, Compton said she would recuse herself.

“I don’t want the perception of a tainted process,” she said.

Yet that was the precise impression the board majority created when they agreed last week to consider interviewing more applicants after a screening committee narrowed the list off 44 to just three qualified candidates.

Earlier in the process, Arnold had included in her motion a request for seven names, and on Tuesday she continued to express shock that the committee didn’t do as instructed.

“When something is so spelled out and just completely ignored, how do I justify that to my constituents?” she asked with comical incredulity.

You justify it by telling them quality matters to you more than quantity, that you support and respect the work of the committee and that you don’t want to further waste time and energy embarking on what amounts to an unabashed fool’s errand.

Also, you recognize that your “constituents” don’t only consist of the fraction of people who put you in office and that in this case, they include every citizen in this county who depends on free and fair elections.

Former San Luis Obispo City Manager Ken Hampian, one of five members of the selection commission, was so dismayed by the blatantly political maneuverings, he told the board he wouldn’t have participated further had an arbitrary quota been forced upon him.

“I couldn’t fathom that the number (of candidates) was more important than the qualifications,” said Hampian, who added he was not aware there was a “flat-out mandate” to choose seven finalists. “If I felt ordered to recommend seven no matter what, I probably wouldn’t have continued with this process.”

Ortiz-Legg defends county staff

Supervisor Compton said she believes the selection committee wasn’t given all the information it needed, implying county staff was to blame.

That was too much for Supervisor Ortiz-Legg.

“The one thing I will not put up with is to have our staff denigrated, demoralized and disparaged,” she said, her voice breaking. “That’s not what happened here.”

She also astutely pointed out that the process now underway is an appointment — not an election — and the board should base its decision on qualifications.

“We need to uphold the credibility of the democratic process,” she said.

‘Best person possible’

Supervisor Peschong called out members of the public who had called him a Nazi and a fascist for wanting to bring in more candidates to interview.

“We’re looking for the best person possible,” he said. “If you don’t like my decision, you can rip me to shreds.”

To his credit, Peschong also went on record in support of the Clerk-Recorder’s Office, which was criticized in the past by conspiracy theorists who, without any proof, believe the 2020 election was “stolen.”

“I don’t buy into the fact the election was stolen this year or last year,” said Peschong. “I believe our county clerk’s office ran a fair election. ... I think we have an exceptional county clerk’s office.”

That being the case, choosing the next county clerk should be a no-brainer for this board. Pick Helen Nolan, who was second-in-command under Gong and is now acting clerk-recorder.

That’s been the most sensible course all along; we’ll find out Tuesday whether the board finally has the fortitude to follow it.

This story was originally published October 6, 2021 at 5:00 AM.