I just called the Board of Elections to confirm that no-one is chllenging any of the three mayors (as their web site indicates) and lo and behold they are having technical difficulties! The site has been down all day and won't be back up until at least 4pm. Meanwhile 5 more candidates have filed for office:
Chapel Hill Mayor: Kevin Wolff
Chapel Hill Town Council: Will Raymond
Carrboro Board of Aldermen: Katrina Ryan
Carrboro Mayor: Chuck Morton and Brian Voyce
These folks will certainly increase the entertainment value of this election, if nothing else.
As always, you can find the complete list at http://orangepolitics.org/elections-2007. I will be adding more information this weekend including a map of candidates, their voter registration info, and any other public information that I can find without too much effort.
Issues:
Comments
Ruby, the PERIOD (.) in your
Ruby, the PERIOD (.) in your link is causing problems. It's a nice mashup.
Two elementary schools
Two elementary schools failed to meet annual yearly progress goals this year: Carrboro (second year in a row) and Frank Porter Graham. Both are in the southern section of the district. Gary Wallach is the only candidate from this section of town--even considering feeder schools (which would be Culbreth Middle or Smith).
Theresa Williams lived in
Theresa Williams lived in Ironwoods when she was on the Board. At that time the neighborhood went to Sewell - McDougle - CHHS. That was changed to Carrboro - Smith - CHHS. I don't think there is much to correlate. Does anyone think we need districts for the School Board or the Town Council?
Useless trivia: Bill Thorpe
Useless trivia: Bill Thorpe fought against going to district elections for the then Chapel Hill Board of Aldermen back in the 70s. And he likes to tell the story!
As much redistricting as is
As much redistricting as is done as I don't see any value in district wide seats for the BOE.
Rather than districts for the TC or BOA, I'd like to see us actively recruit and support candidates who are lower income.
The distribution of reps
The distribution of reps does matter. For two years
of my term on the council, I was the only person who
lived on the south side of CH, while the council was primarily
composed of people who lived in the north. It was hard
for me to get people interested in problems of South
Columbia Street when they rarely used the street in their
daily lives. On the other hand, I was never an expert on
Weaver Dairy Rd and its development issues.
What I found was that, while we had no formal districts,
we did yield to other councilmembers who lived near
the housing project, road widening, etc., for their
daily experiences. Ruby's map is superb, and I would
be concerned if the bulk of the school board members
came from one area of the district, especially with all the
effort the school board puts into redistricting, to
mix and match the kids in specific schhols by various categories.
It's certainly possible to
It's certainly possible to have a representative board without districts, but part of the responsibility for ensuring this falls on the voters, who lack options without geographically disbursed candidates. It's certainly no fault of the candidates, but it's still important to examine it. A lack of equal representation does not mean poor results or poor decisions, however I hope that people lend a slightly higher level of scrutiny to the candidates to ensure that we continue with high standards for all of our schools.
To echo what Joe said, from my experience as a council candidate and a transportation board member, I certainly have been able to bring more to the table when considering projects downtown and along the Franklin Street corridor, having never lived more than a five minute walk from Franklin. I would hope to be able to defer to someone else for ground-level advice on areas I spend less time in. Diverse representation doesn't just prevent unfair attention to a particular area/class/race/etc, it helps make sure that all decisions made are the best, most informed decisions possible.
Ruby's link above should
Ruby's link above should be:
orangepolitics.org/elections-2007
Good idea Terri, but as each
Good idea Terri, but as each of our elected bodies move closer and closer to being a full time job, the less likely it will be possible for folks from a broader spectrum of the community to serve. We can make it more financially viable for people to run and win an office, but if elected can they meet these many obligations as they have evolved?
Sadly, we know who the stragglers are in our current rat race.
RE: Financially Viable. We
RE: Financially Viable.
We still live in a state where the legislator is only available to retirees and those with enough wealth to work a full-time job at McDonald's pay.
Government is getting more and more complicated it seems to me, yet the pay is no better.
How much does a town council
How much does a town council member earn? BOA? County commissioner?
For Chapel Hill, the Mayor's
For Chapel Hill, the Mayor's annual salary is $19,743,
and a Council Member's $11,796 per year.
Not sure about BOA, but an
Not sure about BOA, but an Orange County Commissioner makes $12,772 plus a $2,700 travel allotment, and the Chair makes $16,665 plus $3,300 travel
BOA compensation is $7644.00
BOA compensation is $7644.00 in annual salary with no travel budget. BOA members also receive a free individual membership at Carolina Fitness along with reduced family rates, as do all town employees. A good place to work off the stress of those late night meetings.
Council members get paid
Council members get paid health insurance....do alderpeople and commissioners?
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