Politician brought her baby to vote after she wasn't allowed to vote remotely.

Politician brought her baby to vote after she wasn't allowed to vote remotely


UPDATE: Sept. 1, 2020, 8:32 p.m. PT 

Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon issued a statement on Tuesday evening apologizing to Wicks for his decision not to allow her a proxy vote.

“I want to make a full apology to Assemblymember Wicks. My intention was never to be inconsiderate toward her, her role as a legislator, or her role as a mother.

"Inclusivity and electing more women into politics are core elements of our Democratic values. Nevertheless, I failed to make sure our process took into account the unique needs of our Members. The Assembly needs to do better. I commit to doing better.”

The original story is below.

In the midst of a pandemic, a California lawmaker who had given birth just a month before cast her vote on a bill with her crying baby in her arms. 

It didn't have to be this way. 

Assemblywoman Buffy Wicks had asked to be allowed to vote by proxy on a housing bill Monday, but her request was denied. The speaker of California's State Assembly, Anthony Rendon, decided she would have to vote in person or not at all. Only those who are considered at higher risk of COVID-19 are allowed to have a legislative leader, a proxy, vote on their behalf, according to Assembly rules introduced in July. As a new mother, Wicks didn't cut it in Rendon's eyes.

Those who are pregnant are at an increased risk of getting COVID-19, according to the CDC. The agency doesn't extend the same warning for people who've recently given birth, but postpartum complications could lead to other health issues that do put one at risk, writes Politico, which first reported on Wicks' vote. Babies under two are at higher risk to contract the virus than older children, but it's rare, according to the Mayo Clinic, a nonprofit medical center and research organization.  

"I was actually in the middle of feeding my daughter when this bill came up and I ran down on the floor today because I strongly believe we need to pass this bill. We are 3.5 million homes shy of where we need to be," Wicks said, as her daughter cried in her arms. "And Elly agrees."

"Please, please, please pass this bill, and I'm gonna go finish feeding my daughter."

The bill didn't make it. But another one the Democrat voted for on Monday did. That one would expand the state's paid family leave program if signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom. 


Rendon, a Democrat, was just following the Assembly's rules, his spokesperson, Katie Talbot, told Politico in a statement. "The house resolution pertaining to proxy voting is very specific, in that only members at a higher risk from Covid-19 will be considered eligible for proxy voting," she said. 

"This bar of eligibility was always intended to be high, to ensure the protection of our legislative process."

Mashable reached out to Wicks' and Rendon's respective offices for comment but received no response by the time of publication.

As Wicks is being commended for showing up with her newborn to make the vote — even by Hillary Clinton, no less (Wicks supported her presidential run) — there's a deeper frustration here. 

She shouldn't have been forced to drive more than 80 miles from her Oakland home with her baby in tow to do it. She shouldn't have had to stop feeding her one-month-old to run to the floor and vote. She shouldn't have had to soothe a cranky baby as she pleaded with her colleagues. 


Compassion and workarounds for new parents with few childcare options available is already lacking in America. Add poor interpretations of coronavirus rules to the mix and you tie parents' hands even further. Wicks is a symbol of bigger childcare issues, ones that have only been exacerbated by America's messy and feeble response to the coronavirus. 

While Wicks wore a mask and patted her newborn in a striped blanket on the floor, Senate Republicans voted remotely after one of their members tested positive for coronavirus. Whether Wicks was at a higher risk was up to interpretation. She could've voted remotely, too. 

Just one man decided that she couldn't. 

Comments

  1. Big deal.. countless people (including my family) have done this for years. Why is this even news??

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    1. because she could have been allowed to vote by proxy and didn’t need to stop breastfeeding her daughter to drive 80 miles to vote with a one month old daughter during a pandemic. When exactly did your family member stop breastfeeding your family member , drive 80 miles during a pandemic when she could have picked up the phone and delegate the item to someone else?

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    2. You have countless family members who have served in local government and have newborns and needed to drive 80 miles to represent their constituents? Wow, I'm impressed with your family's civil service.

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    4. people complicate and make life more difficult to prove a point whereas others have lived life like this for years.

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    5. so tell me when this happened to a family member, I’m genuinely interested in hearing your similar example?

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    6. Ive seem this before when I live in Texas. We have touch screen in person voting. It’s pretty common...

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    7. Either the assembly women , dropped what she was doing and drove to the capital to vote or she got no vote at all. It’s not making things more complicated to prove a point.

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    8. Your privilege shows, if you can take time off to vote.
      #DarwinAwards2020
      #ContextMatters
      #IQTest

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    9. it is a privilege to take time off to vote, and in Texas our business owners allow it, or vote after work. Voting is our right, and many businesses support the right to vote. #narrowminded #lowIQ

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    10. she has the right to vote and her employer should support it. If more employers supported our rights, we’d have a stronger nation. Besides , if she came off the assembly line why did she bring her baby to breast feed while voting? Besides who drives 80 miles to vote??? Why??? You can do this locally unless you live 80 miles away form civilian ;D some people!?!?

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    11. Meanwhile:
      https://www.militarytimes.com/.../us-troops-routinely.../

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    12. ...and then there is this.
      Double standard much?
      #ContextMatters
      https://www.npr.org/.../trump-while-attacking-mail-voting...

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    13. I already know this. #commonsense

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    14. #DoubleStandardsMatter

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    15. you are confused more than I can fix.

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    16. mail in voting is needed. Why would someone oppose it?

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    17. you didn’t even bother to read the article

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    18. She’s an elected official . Not a stay at home mother voting

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    19. (•ิ_•ิ)?

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    20. traveling 80 miles to vote (•ิ_•ิ)?

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    21. Context does matter. And you just proved you didn’t bother reading the article.

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    22. she’s an elected official. She had to drive to the capital to vote because didn’t approve a proxy vote. Read the article before you embarrass yourself even more.

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    23. ;| you still don’t understand that you have no idea what you are talking about.

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    24. her system is failing her.

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    25. that’s the point of the article and why it’s news, the exact question you asked

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    26. Randi Duhigg pos chin (•ิ_•ิ)?

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    27. This comment has been removed by the author.

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    28. ¿Que créese?

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  2. Whatever. Ever hear of a baby sitter, like the rest of us? Where's the father??

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    1. the “rest of us” can’t always afford a babysitter and are single parents. So STFU and STFD you privileged prick.

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    2. Awww are you triggered??? She's a politician, there's no reason she can't hire a baby sitter for a couple of hours.

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    3. called the vote and she had to leave immediately

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  3. Ugh this has nothing to do with moms and/or babies, let's be honest no one is forced to have children - it's a choice. The real issue here is that remote voting is not permitted period - don't make it about moms, make it about the voting rules in general so every assemblyperson (mom, health-compromised, or otherwise) has a voice.

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    1. Of course this has to do with having a baby, in this specific instance. It's valuable to have specific examples of why the rules are terrible.

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    2. even though your 100% correct, it became about babies and mother's as a male legislator was able to vote remote.

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    3. That's not entirely true though, many of their Senators voted through proxy for that same bill. Even though their Assembly did not permit remote voting, they allowed proxy for those with higher risk which was apparently every Republic Senator (not that affiliation matters). It was a single person's judgement call as to whether a new mother shld be considered high risk. It's less about what's permitted and more about to whom that permission was waived.

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    4. lol republicans having laws forcing women to have babies all the time. It's literally their 1 issue why they get elected, to force women to have babies.

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    5. i think the point is that there are many reasons for remote voting from newborns to seniors to homebound to remote rural areas. We all have the right to vote.

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    6. Lots of men were allowed to vote remotely due to illness but having a new baby wasn't considered hindering enough to grant her to vote remotely. Even the jerks that told her no originally said they made a mistake. Why are we even debating this?

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  4. Strange how they understand the problems of not voting in person until it comes to blanket sending out ballets to un updated voter roles. That's an equivocation of terms and either they are stupid and can't figure it out or have figured out a way to cheat us lowly voters. Now which party is it in charge on the left coast that is not only alloying this crap that has been in charge out there for ever that is either STUPID or PLOTTING TO CHEAT?

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    1. You didn't read where her male colleagues got to vote remote. The male chamber leader made her...to single her out. Not equal treatment of a coworker.

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    2. You really are clueless.

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    3. making asinine comments is also 100% voluntary.

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    4. I'm clueless because I called someone out for discrimination against mothers?

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    5. This comment has been removed by the author.

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    6. I think she may have inferred sarcasm in your comment, if not then she doesn't get it...

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    7. It may be against the law but it isn't discrimination.

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    8. Where the fuc* do you live the dark ages we woman can do anything and we do so STFU

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    9. https://media1.tenor.co/images/b64b11f5ff4383515b640771a4fe60af/tenor.gif?itemid=5828265

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    10. It's 100% discrimination against new mothers

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    11. what a lame and inconsiderate comment is that!!

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    12. If you find it difficult to read for content and context, you should refrain from commenting.

      Having an opinion on things you fail to educate yourself about has been stupid since the beginning of time.

      Delete
  6. How messed up is the US voting system? In Canada, we drive to a local school or church. I’ve never waited more than 10 minutes.

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    1. It’s not the norm to drive 80 miles to vote. They are just dramatizing things.

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    2. We're idiots, plain and simple lol

      Unfortunately we also have one of the worst-ranked educational systems in the world so not only is our current system outdated and impractical, a large chunk of my fellow Americans are also too ignorant to see the need for change (let alone embracing it)

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    3. that is how it is in the US as well. You can get an absentee ballot if you are going to be away from your local area at the time of the election. And I’ve never waited more than 30 minutes

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    4. did you read the article? This isn't just about voting. It's regarding to the legislature and an apology by the leader was issued after the fact. There isn't reason to gather in large groups as politicians when the vote can be done by proxy. Her situation was made more unfortunate by having a one month baby and living a good distance away.

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    5. speaking from Maine I also agree with your comment, however that's not the case in every state. I know people that have waited up to 5hrs to cast their vote. This is because the voting places are being reduced which means more demand on the ones still available. Depending where you live and the population density this could have a very real impact on the time to vote.

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    6. not that kind of voting. She's a California State Assemblymember, and was participating in a floor vote for a housing bill.

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  7. What a great American

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  8. Trump you care less if any mom or baby got COVID it’s all about you and family staying in White House Trump your name is death in Revelations I believe everyone should be able to vote by mail elders those veterans with physical limitations etc... it’s there vote that counts too safety should mean something

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    1. Trump was just down here in SW Louisiana with no mask on just like everyone else for the last 11 days since hurricane Laura passed through.

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  9. Good.
    Hurricane Laura just tore through Louisiana and I’m still going to drive to my voting location to vote in person for DJT2020

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    1. #TrumpsterLogic ;D ;D ;D ;D

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    3. voting those family values, eh?

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    4. The polls are always open one hour before my shift starts and four hours after it ends.

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    5. Thanks for proving my point.

      Maenwhile:
      https://www.npr.org/.../trump-while-attacking-mail-voting...

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    6. ...and then there is this:
      Double standard much?
      https://www.militarytimes.com/.../us-troops-routinely.../

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  10. I bet she eagerly votes for other ppl's money.

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    Replies
    1. look everyone! I found another Trumper making stupid comments!!

      ::crickets::

      Yeah... I guess that’s pretty much nothing new...

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