A compelling city election. Really.
This week's column.
Two years ago a popular incumbent, Keith Holliday, won his fourth consecutive term as Greensboro's mayor against Nobody, a first-time hopeful from Nowhere with no previous elective experience.
To no one's surprise it was no contest.
And while that nonrace at the top of the ballot may have borne testimony to Holliday's genial personality and tenacious work ethic, it was not a healthy development for a city of this size.
Greensboro needs a competitive mayoral race between quality candidates. It creates interest for the entire election. It sparks constructive debate. And it keeps even a heavy favorite like Holliday, a good guy and a good mayor, on his toes.
This year it has one.
Yvonne Johnson, a councilwoman since 1993 and a former mayor pro tem, faces Milton Kern, a downtown developer, contractor and (true story) former fashion model.
Johnson has had her sights on the mayor's seat for a number of years and was waiting for the right time.
Kern was a surprise, a center-city booster who had considered elected officials a necessary evil. Now he wants to be one.
The plot thickens.
Thirty-three, count 'em, hearty souls have filed for city offices.
So many candidates ...
There's something for almost everyone in this year's election: a contested mayor's race between two very serious candidates.
A contested race for every seat in every district.
A controversial (and patently unnecessary) recall election in one of the districts.
An at-large field containing thousands (well, actually only 13; it just seems like more).
The promise of new voices and new faces on the City Council. The return of a few familiar faces from the past to make things even more interesting.
And a boatload of important and sensitive issues to address.
Now all we need is voters.
Only 12.4 percent of the county's registered voters cast a ballots in 2005 and even fewer, 12 percent, bothered to vote in Greensboro.
Current council member Tom Phillips, who is not seeking re-election, suggested that meant voters were generally happy. I'm betting they were bored. Or at the least, not energized.
Now Greensboro may see one of its most compelling elections in years.
... So many subplots
Among the highlights of the city filing period, which closed Friday, is the at-large race, which contains more than enough warm bodies to field a football team, plus a pair of reserves.
The lone incumbent, Mayor Pro Tem Sandra Anderson Groat, faces 12 challengers for three available seats.
Among those challengers is a former council member, Robbie Perkins, who stepped down two years ago after representing District 3 from 1993 to 2005.
Another is former county commissioner Mary Rakestraw, who had briefly considered running for council in 2005.
Meanwhile, in District 5, former commissioner Trudy Wade will challenge Sandy Carmany for her District 5 seat, as will Angela Carmichael.
Carmany is a solid, conscientious council member. Wade was equally hardworking as a commissioner.
If her early statements are any indication, Wade is planning an aggressive siege.
"We need to bring honesty, integrity and accountability back to city government," Wade said last week
.
Them's fightin' words, if you ask me.
In the suddenly crowded District 3, Berkley Blanks, who has twice run unsuccessfully for sheriff, has filed to run against five others.
And in District 1, Bellamy-Small faces not only a recall election on Aug. 21, but four challengers in the regular election.
It bears saying yet again that the recall effort is a legal but pointless waste of time and money, since Bellamy-Small is up for re-election anyway.
For what it's worth
As for the election that actually matters, some unsolicited advice for candidates as they begin the road to Nov. 6:
Do your homework. For incumbents, there's no excuse for not knowing. As for newcomers, you may not know as much as a sitting council member, but you should have done enough research to be conversant on major issues.
Be specific. We know you're for job creation. Who isn't? But how do you plan to make that happen?
Talk to real people. You will interview with newspaper and TV people, and we appreciate that. But the voters on the street count for more. Talk to them. And listen to them.
Be civil. Despite what you may have seen or heard during county commissioner telecasts, there's no need to call anyone names. Play hard but play fair.
Know the difference between city and county government. For instance, the City Council has no official responsibility for funding schools. (If I had a nickel for every time a City Council candidate mentioned public schools, I'd be wealthy and retired by now.)
Realize you won't know everything. But be honest when that happens. Say you don't know and then find out.
Don't get cocky. Those of you who are former council members and commissioners aren't necessarily more qualified than newcomers. Don't assume that just because you've been there and done that your campaign trail will be an express lane, paved in gold. And remember, you have a record to answer to, for better and for worse.
Expect to be asked about certain issues. And be prepared to answer. For instance, no one should be astonished to have to field questions about the state of the city's police department or the low ratings citizens give government leaders — and each other — in trust.
If you're running the first time, grow an additional layer of skin. You'll likely be criticized during the campaign. You'll definitely be criticized if you win. Take those unflattering words seriously but not too seriously. Separate what's petty from what's constructive. Learn from it.
Respect the office. Yes, this is City Council and not Congress. But running for council is not something you should decide to do on a whim. This is an important position.
And a hard, rewarding job that affects lots of people's lives. Give it the attention and energy it deserves.
Or be prepared to explain why you didn't in the next election.
Comments (9)
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Allen, Sorry this is off-topic but unsure where to vent my concern. Does the N&R believe it helps this community to move forward when editorial cartoons are published like today's 'pulpit forum' race card business. I'm ashamed.
Posted on July 22, 2007 9:41 PM
Steve:
Thanks for the comment. Cartoons by their nature are rarely subtle and tend to offend someone.
Can you be more specific about your concerns?
Do you disagree with the point of the cartoon or its execution?
Do others feel similarly?
Posted on July 23, 2007 8:55 AM
Allen:
As a white guy seeking community dialogue, I wonder why the n&r would totalize in this fashion the Pulpit Forum's motives in that "race card" cartoon.
Do I disagree with the point of the cartoon: absolutely. That said, if it spurs decent dialogue throughout the white and black community and not simply reinforce views of one group, that could be useful. I'm skeptical. My experience tells me that the N&R represents the status quo.
Now that you have printed that cartoon, where is the space to debate it as a community?
Best,
Steve Flynn
Posted on July 23, 2007 6:39 PM
Steve:
I am happy to provide that space right here and now.
Posted on July 23, 2007 7:02 PM
Dear Mr. Johnson,
Thank you for highlighting the City Council races and for your sage advice. I am wondering why you mention only three names in the at-large race. (Similarly, the July 22 front page article only mentioned 7 of the 13 contenders.) This gives the impression that "newcomers" are not newsworthy. How about equal press for all? I would welcome the opportunity to talk with you about who I am and how my platform for honest, collaborative government and my support for continued economic development are good for Greensboro.
Best regards,
Donna Riechmann
Posted on July 24, 2007 8:57 AM
Donna:
That was purely a space issue. We plan plenty of coverage of all of the candidates in the weeks to come, in the printed paper and on our Web site.
More details will follow soon.
Thanks for your comments.
Posted on July 24, 2007 9:11 AM
I too noticed what Ms. Riechmann pointed out: that some candidates' names have already been left out.
I haven't used my own blog in quite some time, and I appreciate how time constraints keep other people from starting and maintaining their own blogs, but candidates for elected office--particularly those who are not already better known in the community--should seriously consider setting up a blog so that they can get out and control their own campaign's message.
The space limitations are probably something that most newspaper workers know and understand, but it's perhaps best viewed as a newspaper's challenge to overcome rather than an excuse for omitting relevant information. (I too would be frustrated if I was a candidate for office and had had my name omitted from coverage--particularly since a "new" candidate would be much more in need of the coverage in the first place to have a chance at earning voters' consideration.)
Celebrating the number of candidates in an election is disingenuous if you don't give equal "space" (attention and treatment) to each one.
Doug Clark indicated plans to provide even more extensive coverage on-line. That definitely should be well-advertised for print readers.
I liked also hearing that your editorial board plans to interview each candidate individually instead of in small groups (as I believe you've indicated doing in the past).
More time will be required on your part, but I'm hopeful that the investment will pay off by allowing you to get to know each individual candidate better, allowing for even better informed judgements to be made.
Covering any forums and/or debates more thoroughly might be positive also.
Right now, to get started, I'd like to be able to match a face with each of the candidates' names.
Just a suggestion, but that might be one place to start with the on-line coverage: posting candidates' names, photographs, contact information, and brief biographies. (Photographs and the suggested information could be solicited from candidates immediately.)
A by-mail (and/or by phone/e-mail) invitation for each candidate to check out the News & Record's blogs and post their thoughts and ideas on them might be another step to take.
If a candidate started right away, I believe s/he could get in 2 or 3 letters to the editor prior to the primary election and at least one additional letter before the November election.
I look forward to following the News & Record's campaign and election coverage, and I look forward to discovering more about each of the candidates and their views.
Posted on July 24, 2007 3:04 PM
Hardy, I'll be providing a detailed overview of the News & Record's elections plan in a soon-to-come post. You're right about the mention of candidate names; we certainly want to be fair and thorough but it is impossible in the flow of every editorial and column to work in the names of 33 people who are running.
We will, however, provide extensive lists and profiles of the candidates online in a special Web page devoted to elections information.
In the meantime, the Inside Scoop offers a full list of the city candidates.
Posted on July 25, 2007 6:45 AM
Thanks Allen for continuing these dialogues.
I don't feel safe that this is the right space for a dialogue on the N&R's editorial cartoon smack down of the Pulpit Forum. But I'll give it a shot.
I'm not a Pulpit Forum member so I have no idea what their reaction is to that editorial cartoon.
But I find it embarrassing that our local 'newspaper of record' would so uncritically offer up such an opinion that so obviously diminishes many of its citizenry.
I would like to hear from the Carolina Peacemaker on their take on this. (I will copy this email to them.)
My experience in the past couple of years surfing blogsboro is that these local blogs (including the N&R's) are heavily schewed to those that are connected to the internet. Many of those so connected perceive themselves as progressives. But how can that really be possible if there is no dialogue with those without such digital access (ostensibly the concerns of such progressives)?
Yet, no doubt there are many minority citizens that are completely connected digitally, yet don't feel it makes any difference to weigh in with such a dialogue.
From what I understand the Pulpit Forum's mission is to advocate a Christianity stemming from the gospels, in the spirit of Martin Luther King, Jr.
How can the N&R help continue this dialogue?
Thanks.
Posted on July 26, 2007 8:44 PM