Local Leaders

It has been almost two years since Senators Obama and McCain launched their campaigns for the White House. For more than 21 months we’ve been bombarded with the media fanfare and national spotlight on a seemingly endless, knock-down, drag-out presidential campaign.

There is so much money, energy, time, and hype devoted to familiarizing us with McCain and Obama, but I bet only one out of ten voters knows the name of the candidates for mayor, city council, county superintendent, or school board in their district.

Stop and think about this for a minute.

Who is responsible for running your neighborhood’s schools?

Who determines your property tax?

Who manages your municipality’s police, fire, and emergency response services?

Who allocates the money to repair your roads?

Who supervises your trash removal, recycling, and sewage?

The answer to all these questions and many more is found in the daily agenda of your local government’s leaders!

Local elections have the greatest bearing and impact on our daily lives of any other election. Therefore, we must invest research, time, and commitment to making the right choices.

Your school board member’s position on how to fix local schools is ten times more important than Obama or McCain’s viewpoint on secondary education

Your mayor’s choice of police chief is twenty times more important than McCain or Obama’s choice of Secretary of Homeland Security.

Recently, five MLWGS seniors had the opportunity to meet all five Richmond mayoral candidates at a community forum. The candidates spoke for ninety minutes about the best ways to fix the city’s biggest problems.

Everything from the benefits of city charter schools to the future of the James River was discussed during the mayoral debate. And, this forum was only one of the almost twenty debates in which all five candidates are attempting to gain the confidence of city voters before Election Day.

At another mayoral forum, four candidates spoke about, or were asked by the Jabberwock to speak about, their opinion of MLWGS and the “diversity issue.” Issues that directly affect you, me, and the Richmond community are being proposed, discussed, and argued at events like these.

On Monday, October 20 at 7 pm, candidates seeking local office to represent MLWGS’ Newtowne Neighborhood will visit room 153, meet community members, and discuss the issues that matter. Interested students should attend and show our neighbors that we care about MLWGS and the people who live nearby.

Similar candidate forums are held in every locality across the region for every locally elected office – county supervisor, city councilperson, school board representative, and even sheriff!

So don’t be lazy! Get out and meet the people who are seeking your vote for local office. Check out their websites or read about their positions in the newspaper.

Attend a debate, or just open the door and listen with an open-mind if a candidate comes to your house while canvassing. Volunteer if you find a candidate whose positions resonate with you and your beliefs!

If you are old enough on November 4, be proud when you go to the polls. When you look at the ballot, don’t let yourself be one of those uniformed voters who cannot recognize your local candidates’ names.

Choose the members of your local government wisely, because when it comes down to the issues that matter, these people are the ones that make choices which affect you each day.