Win, lose or draw

Early voting has already begun. It is a week until the general election on November 2nd. And then the signs will come down and the robocalls and mailings will stop for another two years.

This will be my last posting until after the election so I wanted to share a few thoughts from my win, lose or draw speech.

First, thank you to everyone who voted for me in the primary and made me your nominee. I hope that I have run a campaign worthy of the honor. Thank you to everyone who voted for me in the general election. I hope that I have earned it. Thank you to my outstanding volunteers and long-suffering family who have gone that extra mile for me. Thank you to my wife and daughters who have hardly seen me since July.

I don’t think I’ve met any candidates who are running for the wrong reason. They all have the purest of intentions. I disagree with some of their philosophies and policies. It is interesting just how much we all have in common. We all want a better future for our
children. We all want a cleaner environment. We all want to feel safe.

I’ve met a lot of people and learned about a lot of interesting groups while on the campaign trail. I hope that those relationships will continue in the future. There are a lot of civic-minded people out there doing great things for their communities.

Has the campaign changed me as a person? Yes and no. I’m still the book-worm with all sorts of ideas for new laws and repealing old laws. But I’ve increasingly come to realize that the government is not going to solve all the problems facing us. You are.

My faith in the American people has grown. The people are angry but they don’t know what they are angry at. The people have lost faith in themselves. Like Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz, we’ve had the answers all along. The people will create the jobs and get the economy moving again through small businesses. The people will clean the environment through their individual actions. The people will make themselves safer by locking their doors, reporting crimes and not being afraid of their own neighborhoods anymore. Government has a role to play, but it’s a supporting role to the people.

Win, lose or draw, I am excited about the future and plan to do my part to protect it.

Keep an eye on the papers and the internet to find out the results and DON’T FORGET TO VOTE CHIAPPELLI!

Teachers Endorsement

Thank you Teachers for endorsing me. I am proud that Maryland's schools have been ranked number one in the nation for two years in a row. I hope we can extend that record for the next four years.

On a personal note, I am a product of public education. I went to the Public Honors College (St. Mary's College of Maryland) and then to the University of Maryland School of Law. We have a good system.

I would not have progressed as far as I have without the help of public education, in-state tuition which has remained affordable and student loan financing. Thank you teachers and thank you Democrats for creating this ladder of opportunity to for me to climb up.

Only a few more days to go until early voting! Vote Chiappelli.

Cul-de-Sac King

Yard signs. Whether you like them or not, they're a sign of the season. We've been very active getting them out to our supporters in the area and I've learned a few things.

-Businesses don't like to put up campaign signs. And I don't blame them. You want customers no matter who they vote for. Why antagonize half of your potential customers? So for that reason, I appreciate my business supporters all the more. Thank you!

-Apparently most of my supporters live at the ends of cul-de-sac's. They have my sign in their yards, but only their neighbors can see them. I'm not sure what this means. Are my supporters very private people who like to live off the beaten path? Possibly. Do they live away from the main roads because they have young children who roam around? Probably. Thank you for your support!

-I like small yard signs because it seems more grassroots. I've tried to only place my signs on private property with the owners permission. It's an intrusion and I don't want to be rude with a billboard.

-The weather does not like small signs. Between the winds and the deluges, it's amazing any signs at all are still standing.

-The yard-sign fairies are alive and well. Who takes the signs? When do they take them? What do they do with them once they take them? Nobody knows.

What do you think of yard-signs?

Remember to order your absentee ballots now if you'll be away on Election day!

Sierra Club Endorsement

I am proud to have received the Sierra Club endorsement! They are a group with a serious mission and they only endorse a few candidates. I am very honored to be included in that select group. I hope that I am able to live up to our shared ideals.

Helmets and Freedom

While I was standing outside of the polls on election day, a fellow rode up and wanted to know if I stood for freedom or not. Of course I said yes because I can't think of a single candidate who opposes freedom. (Actually I just thought of a couple, some of whom I am running against.)

As it turns out, his biggest issue was the helmet law in Maryland which mandates that a biker must wear a helmet or face fines and possible criminal conviction.

I have to confess that I do not own a motorcycle and I have never actually ridden a motorcycle. My wife has. Her whole family, my in-laws, are big motorcycle people. Once you turn three in her family, you learn to ride a bike. She's not kidding, I've seen the photos. My father-in-law owns Deer Park Cycle in Westminster doing repairs and restorations. His brand of choice is the Triumph. (Trying to get you some business, Jack!)



I think it's absurd to have a law that forces people to wear helmets. To me, it seems like a good idea to wear a helmet, but that's just my opinion. And that's my point. It's your skull. It's not the government's business what you choose to do with it. It is if you are interfering with the life, liberty or property of another person. But wearing a helmet is a personal decision. I don't see how the government can justify this law.

I would proudly sponsor the legislation to repeal the helmet law in Maryland. To answer that voters question again, yes I stand for freedom.

Vote for freedom, Vote Chiappelli.

Thanks!

Thank you Democrats from the Fighting 31st for picking me as your nominee for the House of Delegates!

4,059 of you voted for me during the Primary and I appreciate each and every one. Now here's the tricky part, I need you to do it again and bring three friends with you for the General election on November 2nd.

Vote Chiappelli!

Political Forum

Last night was the first political forum where all the candidates were invited and given the opportunity to speak. It was interesting to hear everyone's stump speeches. There were about 14 candidates there so we were limited to about 3 minutes to talk. I stayed within the limits, the other candidates did not.

So, of course, afterwards I thought about what I should have said if I had taken more time like the other folks. I know, you always know what to say ten minutes after the moment passes. Luckily, with the power of blogging, I can give myself a do-over.

What I said, more or less:

"I'm Jeremiah Chiappelli and I'm running for the house of delegates. I'm from Pasadena. I was raised here. I left for a few years for school but then I came back because Pasadena is a great place to live. I have a law firm on Mountain Road, so look me up if you get into trouble.

"I have a wife and two young daughters ages 2 and 4. I'm running for the house of delegates to protect the future. I'm an optimist and I still believe that things are going to get better. When you have kids, you are saying that you have a stake in the future and you want things to be better. 'For ourselves and our posterity.' I think the future is going to be awesome. And we need to protect it.

"People ask me why I'm running, what are my important issues. The answer is all of them. Right now the economy is huge, we need to put people back to work. And the environment, we can put people back to work cleaning our environment. But I'm interested in all the issues. I'm not running on any one issue. I want to work on hundreds of small problems so that we can do better in the future.

"Thank you."

What I should have said, if I had taken the time:

(Same introduction)

"You'll hear all the other candidates and elected officials bang the table and complain about all the terrible things happening and all the problems facing us (they did). Doom and gloom. But that ignores our history. We've had almost 400 years of experience in overcoming problems. These problems shall pass. I have faith in the people. You have overcome problems in the past, you will overcome obstacles in the future. The goal is for government to assist you and not get in the way.

"Small businesses are the engines of the economy and the creators of jobs. We need to make it easy for people to start their own businesses. We need to shift taxes away from the incomes of the middle class and working poor. I'm a big fan of the green collar jobs. Helping the environment is a growth industry and there is no reason why Maryland can't be a leader in this field.

"You'll only hear problems and doom and gloom from the other candidates because they want to scare you into voting for them. I live in Maryland, one of the greatest states in the nation. We have a highly educated workforce, a nationally ranked public education system, and a great court system. Of course we can do better. But let's not ignore what we've already accomplished!

"I want your vote not because you're scared, but because you share my belief that the future is going to be awesome."

Early voting starts tomorrow! (September 3rd)

Get out there and Vote Chiappelli!