FRESNO COUNTY – Fresnans Interested in Fair Elections (FIFE) cry foul, saying Fresno City Attorney Andrew Janz’s misinterpretation of case law gave FIFE’s opponents an unfair advantage in the March 2024 primary election.
In court documents FIFE filed with Fresno Superior Court on Oct. 4, 2024, the group contends that Janz caused its members harm because he decided not to enforce a section from the Fresno City Charter that places limits on when individuals running for office are able to solicit campaign funds. The group is suing both the city and Janz.
Dion Bourdase is a FIFE member and the only member mentioned by name in the court filing. Bourdase made an unsuccessful run for Supervisor Steve Brandau’s District 2 seat in the March primary. In that contest, Brandau and incumbent Fresno City Councilmember Garry Bredefeld received the most votes and will face off in the November election.
Bourdase and FIFE argue that Bredefeld had an unfair advantage because, as an incumbent, he used his office to solicit campaign contributions before officially declaring he was running to keep his council seat. When Bredefeld announced he was running for a seat as a supervisor, he transferred his campaign war chest – a term used to describe a stash of money that was donated before the start of his campaign – to his supervisor campaign.
The county filed suit against Bredefeld and fellow council incumbent Luis Chaves, who is running for the District 3 supervisor seat. In its suit, the county sought to place a $30,000 cap on the funds the incumbents could transfer to their supervisor campaigns. The court disagreed, ruling that the 2020 ordinance the county used to strengthen its legal argument was unconstitutional.
SECTION 309
Fresno City Charter Section 309 mandates that candidates can only accept campaign contributions between the opening of the election filing period and the end of the year in which the campaign takes place.
In a memorandum Janz issued on Oct. 5, 2023, Janz disputed 309. In his memorandum, titled “City of Fresno Election Law Frequently Asked Questions,” question 6 asked, “Are candidates limited to a specific window of time for fundraising?” Janz answered no.
Janz referred to a 2019 U.S. Fifth Circuit case, Zimmerman v. City of Austin, where the court ruled that imposing time limits on fundraising violates the First Amendment. Janz argued that, until such time that a court having jurisdiction over the city of Fresno overrules the Zimmerman case, Zimmerman is the legal authority.
But in its court document, FIFE argued that a 2011 U.S. Ninth Circuit case, Thalheimer v. City of San Diego, upheld a restriction on incumbents accepting campaign donations. FIFE admits that Thalheimer was overruled in a 2019 case but was overruled on other grounds and not on the provisions affecting campaign donations.
FIFE also referred to two measures that support 309. The first is Measure E, which contained the addition of 309 to the city charter. Measure E was passed in March 1993.
The second was Measure O, which was proposed in 2018. Measure O, referred to as a “Technical Charter Cleanup,” contained an analysis by then Fresno City Attorney James Sloan. In his analysis, Sloan stated that 309 was unconstitutional based on an unnamed circuit court opinion – presumably, Zimmerman. Voters rejected Measure O, leaving 309 intact.
Section 309 emerged from municipal corruption scandals from the early 1990s. The FBI launched Operation Redzone to address charges that local developers and their agents had city council members from Clovis and Fresno in their pockets. Several council members were investigated as a result of Redzone.
An Oct. 11 article in The Business Journal carried a statement from Janz’s office regarding FIFE’s lawsuit.
“The lawsuit is completely meritless,” said the statement. “The Fresno City Charter has zero bearing on County Supervisor races. Time limits are unconstitutional and violate free speech under the first amendment.”
In the Prayer for Relief section of the lawsuit, FIFE asked the court to set aside Janz’s decision not to enforce Section 309. The prayer asked the court to require Janz to enforce 309 on all current and future persons and committees subject to the section. The prayer also asked that FIFE be awarded the costs of the proceeding, attorneys’ fees and any other relief the court considers proper.
