Election 2013: results and post-election thoughts
Once again, incumbents prevailed in Iowa City. Terry Dickens won the District B contest and Susan Mims retained her at-large seat. However, they will be joined by a rookie: Kingsley Botchway II, who beat out Catherine Champion and Rockne Cole for the council’s open at-large position.
I think Botchway is a great addition to the council, but wins for both Dickens and Mims means the status quo is mostly intact. Which is apparently what the voters in Iowa City want. And, I guess, why not? The city’s finances are in good shape and we have leaders who are thinking ahead — especially in regards to an upcoming decrease in tax revenue, courtesy of recent reforms at the state level. The council’s opponents seem to be, once again, a vocal minority. But I think Botchway’s open-mindedness and perspective will increase the council’s accessibility and empathy toward those who feel they are under-represented.
(On a side note, I am becoming suspicious and weary of those who say the council “doesn’t listen.” Botchway noted in his Channel 4 statement that many of those he spoke to voiced concern that the council is not listening. But here’s the thing: Do the council’s critics say that because councilors purposely ignore certain public input, or because the council doesn’t automatically drop everything when one person objects? Does the council “not listen” because it is overtly biased, or because a handful of locals don’t get their way all the time? I think it depends on the issue, and at most I think it is probably half-and-half. At times it seems like the council is a rubber stamp for developers, but at others it seems the area’s famous obstructionalists are being too stubborn. I agree the council should hear and listen to everyone’s concerns, foster compromise and mitigation, but at a certain point councilors need to take the bull by the horns and make a decision that best serves the community’s interest. That is what they are there to do. Somebody will always end up being dissatisfied.)
Bobblehead makes a damn good point about the District B results: Why do the votes from Distracts A and C count? Shouldn’t those of us in District B decide the race for ourselves? I wondered that a couple years ago when the District A and C races were on my ballot. Why did I get to vote for those district seats when I did not live in either? A lot of it has to do with efficiency since the county may not want to spend money printing different ballots for different districts. (But it does that for every city and township, anyway.) If that is the case, why are the votes from unrelated precincts counted? Why even have districts is all the seats are essentially at-large? I will need to check with the city about that.
Speaking of precincts, I noticed that two precincts are listed at Mercer: IC06 and IC16. Curious, I called the auditor’s office and received a prompt and knowledgeable explanation. IC16 previously voted at Lucas Elementary. However, that precinct was moved to Mercer because of a scheduling conflict or something (I cannot remember what I was told; great reporting skills, huh?). It may be a permanent move because the school district is becoming leery about using schools as polling places.
I think Botchway is a great addition to the council, but wins for both Dickens and Mims means the status quo is mostly intact. Which is apparently what the voters in Iowa City want. And, I guess, why not? The city’s finances are in good shape and we have leaders who are thinking ahead — especially in regards to an upcoming decrease in tax revenue, courtesy of recent reforms at the state level. The council’s opponents seem to be, once again, a vocal minority. But I think Botchway’s open-mindedness and perspective will increase the council’s accessibility and empathy toward those who feel they are under-represented.
(On a side note, I am becoming suspicious and weary of those who say the council “doesn’t listen.” Botchway noted in his Channel 4 statement that many of those he spoke to voiced concern that the council is not listening. But here’s the thing: Do the council’s critics say that because councilors purposely ignore certain public input, or because the council doesn’t automatically drop everything when one person objects? Does the council “not listen” because it is overtly biased, or because a handful of locals don’t get their way all the time? I think it depends on the issue, and at most I think it is probably half-and-half. At times it seems like the council is a rubber stamp for developers, but at others it seems the area’s famous obstructionalists are being too stubborn. I agree the council should hear and listen to everyone’s concerns, foster compromise and mitigation, but at a certain point councilors need to take the bull by the horns and make a decision that best serves the community’s interest. That is what they are there to do. Somebody will always end up being dissatisfied.)
Bobblehead makes a damn good point about the District B results: Why do the votes from Distracts A and C count? Shouldn’t those of us in District B decide the race for ourselves? I wondered that a couple years ago when the District A and C races were on my ballot. Why did I get to vote for those district seats when I did not live in either? A lot of it has to do with efficiency since the county may not want to spend money printing different ballots for different districts. (But it does that for every city and township, anyway.) If that is the case, why are the votes from unrelated precincts counted? Why even have districts is all the seats are essentially at-large? I will need to check with the city about that.
Speaking of precincts, I noticed that two precincts are listed at Mercer: IC06 and IC16. Curious, I called the auditor’s office and received a prompt and knowledgeable explanation. IC16 previously voted at Lucas Elementary. However, that precinct was moved to Mercer because of a scheduling conflict or something (I cannot remember what I was told; great reporting skills, huh?). It may be a permanent move because the school district is becoming leery about using schools as polling places.
