YL voters send messages with ballots
A comment attributed to Yankee baseball great Yogi Berra—“It’s déjà vu all over again!”—easily applies to this year’s City Council election.
In 2000, voters, fed up with nonstop political and personal bickering, chose four fresh faces to give the governing body much-needed new blood, as one incumbent resigned, two didn’t seek re-election and voters turned out a fourth
This year, voters again appear weary of the endless political wrangling and unmistakable personal animosity, judging by e-mails I’ve received and blog comments I’ve read. And just one of the two incumbents whose terms are expiring will battle for re-election.
Mayor John Anderson opted out of the race—he said soon after his election in 2006 he probably would serve only one term—but his nemesis Jan Horton is running for a new term. Filing closes Aug. 11 at City Hall.
Back in 2000, a long-standing feud between Hank Wedaa, first elected in 1970, and John Gullixson, first elected in 1990, divided the dais 3-2, most often with Mark Schwing as a Wedaa ally and Barbara Kiley and Gene Wisner supporting Gullixson.
After contentious debate, with plenty of personal attacks, ended the reign of 27-year City Manager Art Simonian, Wisner resigned, Kiley and Wedaa didn’t file for re-election and Schwing lost his seat. Gullixson left office two years later.
Current quarrels often involve Anderson and Horton, and the political gamesmanship is quite evident during the twice monthly council sessions and on their personal Web sites, although Anderson removed his pages soon after he announced he wasn’t running.
Since 2008, Anderson has been joined on 3-2 votes by Schwing and Nancy Rikel, while Jim Winder, 2000 winner and 2008 survivor by one vote, frequently teams with Horton.
This column doesn’t have enough space to detail all of the reasons for the ill will between Anderson and Horton, and some are too personal for print. But the council majority twice has denied Horton the mayor’s chair after she served as mayor pro tem in 2008.
And Anderson is a frequent subject of Horton’s husband’s video recording at meetings, including a recent Finance Committee meeting I observed. Jim Horton focused a small camera on Anderson for most of the session, even when others at the table were speaking.
Both Anderson and Horton have strong supporters, but sadly, a few of them resort to name-calling when posting comments on local Web sites, blogs and Facebook pages.
None of these actions are illegal, but they don’t inspire confidence in city government, some of the people in elected office and others scrambling to take sides in the conflict.
Ever since three of the original council members were dumped in the 1970 second city election, voters haven’t been reluctant to either defeat incumbents or reject challengers. Residents want a healthy discussion of issues sans name-calling and personal attacks.
In 2000, voters, fed up with nonstop political and personal bickering, chose four fresh faces to give the governing body much-needed new blood, as one incumbent resigned, two didn’t seek re-election and voters turned out a fourth
This year, voters again appear weary of the endless political wrangling and unmistakable personal animosity, judging by e-mails I’ve received and blog comments I’ve read. And just one of the two incumbents whose terms are expiring will battle for re-election.
Mayor John Anderson opted out of the race—he said soon after his election in 2006 he probably would serve only one term—but his nemesis Jan Horton is running for a new term. Filing closes Aug. 11 at City Hall.
Back in 2000, a long-standing feud between Hank Wedaa, first elected in 1970, and John Gullixson, first elected in 1990, divided the dais 3-2, most often with Mark Schwing as a Wedaa ally and Barbara Kiley and Gene Wisner supporting Gullixson.
After contentious debate, with plenty of personal attacks, ended the reign of 27-year City Manager Art Simonian, Wisner resigned, Kiley and Wedaa didn’t file for re-election and Schwing lost his seat. Gullixson left office two years later.
Current quarrels often involve Anderson and Horton, and the political gamesmanship is quite evident during the twice monthly council sessions and on their personal Web sites, although Anderson removed his pages soon after he announced he wasn’t running.
Since 2008, Anderson has been joined on 3-2 votes by Schwing and Nancy Rikel, while Jim Winder, 2000 winner and 2008 survivor by one vote, frequently teams with Horton.
This column doesn’t have enough space to detail all of the reasons for the ill will between Anderson and Horton, and some are too personal for print. But the council majority twice has denied Horton the mayor’s chair after she served as mayor pro tem in 2008.
And Anderson is a frequent subject of Horton’s husband’s video recording at meetings, including a recent Finance Committee meeting I observed. Jim Horton focused a small camera on Anderson for most of the session, even when others at the table were speaking.
Both Anderson and Horton have strong supporters, but sadly, a few of them resort to name-calling when posting comments on local Web sites, blogs and Facebook pages.
None of these actions are illegal, but they don’t inspire confidence in city government, some of the people in elected office and others scrambling to take sides in the conflict.
Ever since three of the original council members were dumped in the 1970 second city election, voters haven’t been reluctant to either defeat incumbents or reject challengers. Residents want a healthy discussion of issues sans name-calling and personal attacks.
posted by Jim Drummond at 12:00 PM
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