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Kevin Akin
From Ballotpedia
This page was current at the end of the individual's last campaign covered by Ballotpedia. Please contact us with any updates.
Kevin Akin (Peace and Freedom Party) ran for election for California Treasurer. He lost in the primary on June 5, 2018.
Akin completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2018. Click here to read the survey answers.
Biography
Akin worked as a carpenter from 1968 to 1963, as a steelworker from 1973 through 1983, and as a steam engineer in a hospital boiler room from 1985 through 2005. He is now retired.[1]
Elections
2018
- See also: California Treasurer election, 2018
General election
General election for California Treasurer
Fiona Ma defeated Greg Conlon in the general election for California Treasurer on November 6, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Fiona Ma (D) | 64.1 | 7,825,587 |
 | Greg Conlon (R) | 35.9 | 4,376,816 | |
| Total votes: 12,202,403 (100.00% precincts reporting) | |||
 = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Nonpartisan primary election
Nonpartisan primary for California Treasurer
Fiona Ma and Greg Conlon defeated Jack Guerrero, Vivek Viswanathan, and Kevin Akin in the primary for California Treasurer on June 5, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Fiona Ma (D) | 44.5 | 2,900,606 |
| ✔ | | Greg Conlon (R) | 20.8 | 1,357,635 |
 | Jack Guerrero (R) | 19.3 | 1,257,315 | |
 | Vivek Viswanathan (D) | 13.0 | 848,026 | |
 | Kevin Akin (Peace and Freedom Party) | 2.3 | 148,282 | |
| Total votes: 6,511,864 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Campaign themes
2018
Ballotpedia biographical submission form
The candidate completed Ballotpedia's biographical information submission form:
| “ | What is your political philosophy?
I want to empower working people, and disempower billionaires. My main reason for running for this office this year is to push for the formation of a publicly-owned California state bank, that could save so much money for the state and the people that now goes to private bankers. [2] |
” |
| —Kevin Akin[1] | ||
Ballotpedia survey responses
- See also: Ballotpedia's candidate surveys
Kevin Akin participated in Ballotpedia's candidate survey on May 31, 2018. The survey questions appear in bold, and Kevin Akin's responses follow below.[3]
What would be your top three priorities, if elected?
| “ | First, start a study of the advantages of a publicly-owned State Bank, and publicize the results, pushing the legislature to establish such a State Bank (along the lines of the present state bank in North Dakota, that has saved so much money for that state and its people. Second, ensure that all 60+ commissions, committees, and authorities on which the Treasurer sits, or to which the Treasurer appoint representatives, have a working-class point of view represented on them for the first time, with activists for the people serving with the Treasurer. Third, push to revise tax policy so that less of the burden falls on working people and the poor, and more of the burden is placed where it belongs, on those wealthy people who benefit the most from our economy and can most easily pay a larger share.[4][2] | ” |
What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about? Why?
| “ | I am passionate about medical care for all, I am passionate about empowering workers and disempowering their billionaire exploiters, and I am passionate about bringing true democracy to our country and its economy.Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; invalid names, e.g. too many[2]
|
” |
Ballotpedia also asked the candidate a series of optional questions. Kevin Akin answered the following:
Who do you look up to? Whose example would you like to follow and why?
| “ | There are thousands of working-class heroes of the past I admire, and I particularly admire the great labor leader Eugene Debs, who said "It is better to vote for what you need, but not get it, than to vote for what you don't want, and get it." Among prominent American figures of my lifetime, I strongly admire Martin Luther King, Jr.[2] | ” |
| “ | Many books, including "The Jungle" by Upton Sinclair, and "Grapes of Wrath" by John Steinbeck, but for an understanding of my political philosophy I recommend the website of the Peace and Freedom Party at www.peaceandfreedom.org with its many links and documents.[2] | ” |
| “ | Honesty, forthrightness, steadfastness in adhering to principle, and support for the working-class majority against the forces of the wealthy.[2] | ” |
| “ | I think I have sufficiently demonstrated the virtues in the answer to the last question, over a lifetime of advocacy for working people and for human rights.[2] | ” |
| “ | Maintain honest dealings in all matters, financial and otherwise, and push for changes that will benefit working people. I have said that I do not intend to "represent all Californians," just 99 percent of them. The top one percent have far too much representation in Sacramento already.[2] | ” |
| “ | I would like to leave a legacy of a publicly-owned State Bank, to operate on behalf of the people of California. I would hope that those who vote for me understand that their votes count to push for what I propose whether I win or lose, and every vote counts.[2] | ” |
| “ | I remember the relief of my parents when the Korean war armistice was adopted a few days before my third birthday, and their concern over the nuclear weapons tests of the 1950s. My father had a particular interest in astronomy and in rockets, and I remember the family getting up on our roof with a telescope to see the transit of Sputnik 1 across the evening sky when I was 7 years old.[2] | ” |
| “ | As a teenager I worked various odd jobs and short-term jobs, but my first steady full-time job was as a carpenter in a motor-home plant in Riverside at 18.[2] | ” |
| “ | Even if I could recall an awkward date, I probably would not tell you about it. My wife and I just celebrated our 45th wedding anniversary, so anything before that is ancient history.[2] | ” |
| “ | Pesach, the Jewish holiday of Passover. The fact that it is a feast-day with historical associations probably explains why, as I like history and have always been fond of food.[2] | ” |
| “ | I am a voracious reader, and it is just too hard to pick a favorite out of all the hundreds of really good books I love.[2] | ” |
| “ | I am going to skip silly questions, with the election so close.[2] | ” |
| “ | Supporting my family has always been a struggle, and as a poor kid I know what hunger is like, and have made sure that my kids never experienced the real thing. It took a lot of work over decades, as a carpenter, a steelworker, and a boiler room engineer, but I managed to earn enough in pensions to scrape by in retirement. Economic problems still worry me, though, and I want to make sure that California has the tools at hand to avoid hardship and keep our economy humming for the benefit of working people.[2] | ” |
| “ | The office is key to the flow of money in and out of government, and the Treasurer can help make sure the money is not siphoned off by wealthy interests who want everything for themselves.[2] | ” |
| “ | Monitoring the flow of money, making sure it is not misused, and advocating for improvements in the law and in the economy.[2] | ” |
| “ | Many of them! The Treasurer sits on over 60 boards, commissions, committees, and authorities, too many to list in this answer, and almost all of them are of considerable importance.[2] | ” |
| “ | In politics, yes, but not necessarily in elected office. Far too many politicians see elected office as opportunities for themselves rather than for the people. I have over 50 years of political experience, as an activist, party official, and occasional candidate, but have never received a paycheck for holding a political position. All my work so far has been as an unpaid volunteer. That experience can be even more helpful than experience cashing paychecks from the state.[2] | ” |
| “ | Listening to people, dealing with their problems, and pushing for solutions to the problems of many people, all are important for someone in this office. I assume that all the candidates can do the needed math, but the real question is whose side are they on?[2] | ” |
See also
| California | State Executive Elections | News and Analysis |
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External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Information submitted on Ballotpedia's biographical information submission form on May 31, 2018
- ↑ 2.00 2.01 2.02 2.03 2.04 2.05 2.06 2.07 2.08 2.09 2.10 2.11 2.12 2.13 2.14 2.15 2.16 2.17 2.18 2.19 2.20 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Note: The candidate's answers have been reproduced here verbatim without edits or corrections by Ballotpedia.
- ↑ Ballotpedia's candidate survey, "Kevin Akin's responses," May 31, 2018
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