The Hernandez Get Out the Vote~Van after Van of the Elderly, Disabled, Mentally Challenged

From the editor:  Many of you are tiring of hearing about the Yolanda Begum/Erin H. Garcia JP race.  Some feel there are abuses on both sides, but make no mistake:  The Hernandez family have been stealing elections for decades and are about to steal this one.  If you want clean, honest, fair elections, you should find the report below disturbing at the very least. . .JB

Nena and I Almost Arrested

The lady on the left, a supervisor of the Cameron Park Polling Station, walked to the edge of the park to confer with some in the Abelardo Gomez group.(We were told that this lady works for Ernie Hernandez, but that has not been confirmed.)  Earlier in the afternoon the same lady had called the Sheriff's Department and Election Commissioner Roger Ortiz to complain that my wife and I were sitting in front of the polling station in the last 2 of perhaps a dozen chairs lined up in front of the recreation hall.  (We were later told that the only time those chairs were used all week was by people coming outside in anticipation of a van delivery of voters.  The officials would sit, waiting for the van to pull up, then assist those inside with ballots.)


When the supervisor had first approached Nena and I about our reason for being there, my wife, in her typically candid manner, explained that we were there to document the van traffic delivering voters.  The poll supervisor explained that no pictures could be taken on the premises.  Nena said:  "I see the signs.  I'm aware that I have to step outside the gate to take a picture.  My camera has a zoom lense so that will be fine."  The supervisor flipped open her cell phone, apparently dialing a number.


In a few minutes, Roger Ortiz drove up.  Several minutes later, a county sheriff's vehicle appeared as well, but the officer never approached us, likely realizing there was no violation.

Ortiz, Part of the Problem

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Maybe ten minutes after the election supervisor called him, the normally reticent, almost backward Election Administrator, Roger Ortiz,  became suddenly macho in temperament,  accusing us of having a camera.  Nena repeated what she had told the supervisor.  "I told her I would go outside the polling area to take any pictures, but she did not listen."  She still called Ortiz and the sheriff.  When Nena explained, that, yes, we had a camera, but we had taken it to the truck, Ortiz shifted gears and accused us of loitering.  Can you imagine?  Election Administrator Roger Ortiz, sitting idly by while the Hernandez steal their 3rd or 4th election, bringing van after van of elderly, disabled and mentally challenged to the polling place with the Hernandez/Masso/Gomez sample yellow ballot clutched in their hands and he is worried about two innocent people sitting in front of the polling place, talking?  Give our community a collective break!  Astonishingly, later that afternoon, the same poll supervisor wanting us to be arrested, walked across the street to tell a campaign worker not to talk to Zeke Silva.  What country is this?

Collusion Between Election Officials and the Hernandez?

I'm raising this as a mere question.  Here are our observations:  We heard on Friday morning that vans were delivering voters to Cameron Park.  We were told an election official would go out to the van, ask the driver how many ballots were needed.  The passengers would then fill them out in the van.  That's what we were told.  We wanted to see for ourselves.  During our first two hours, we saw almost no vans at all delivering voters to Cameron Park, only a trickling of able-bodied voters in individual vehicles.  So we left.

No sooner did we get home, then I get a call:  "Jim, as SOON as you left, the vans began coming in again."  We raced back to Cameron Park.  Once back at the polling place, the vans stopped entering through the gate of the park, but stayed outside with the voters being walked in small groups to the polling place.  Who was tipping off the Hernandez/Masso/Gomez camp?  Was it the election official seen openly cavorting with them in the picture above?

You Can't Write Down Our Plate Number!  Na Na Na Na Na!

Early in the week a young woman in the Begum campaign was writing down the plate numbers of the numerous vans under the direction of Norma Hernandez.  Roger Ortiz came outside his election office and told the young woman to not do that.  He offered no explanation.  In any event, the Hernandez/Masso/Gomez camp had another trick up their collectives sleeves; renting vans from a used car dealer.

A lady who sat across from the Cameron Park polling place all week offered:  "They get them at Junior's.  They rent them so no one can take the plate number and trace them to a certain person."  At the left is one of several vans used Friday.  It has a sticker on the windshield giving the model year and a paper temporary plate behind.  Folks, the Hernandez have been working elections for a long time.  

Settling Up for $5 per Vote?

Carlos Masso with the Drivers

A persistent rumor today was that the politiqueras were delivering voters at five dollars a head.  Actually, that seems cheap.

We also learned that some home health aides were rewarded for rounding up patients from adult day care centers.  Juan Montoya of the El Rrun Rrun blog reported that when Zeke Silva tried to pick up his dad at such a day care facility, it was a home health aide who tried to steer his dad into her van instead.(We have more detail on the Zeke Silva incident which will be provided in another story.)

"If They Want to Win, They Have to Go With Me!"

Herminia Becerra with another politiquera to her left

The politiquera on the left tried to interfere with our picture taking in the Masso/Gomez tent, but Herminia Becerra would have none of that.  She demanded a picture, while bragging:  "I've been doing this 56 years.  No one wins without me.  I'm the best there is."

Actually, with all the van activity witnessed this weekend, she may be correct.  It will take a very good runoff turnout to overcome the shenanigans of the Hernandez's, the compliance of Roger Ortiz and the track record of Herminia Becerra.