B138. Salisbury City Council Candidate Recommendations

Early voting begins tomorrow, Oct 19, for Salisbury City Council. Only a small percentage of eligible voters will make the effort. If you live in the city limits, please be one who does. In elections where few will vote, and in elections with 13 candidates and only 5 positions, every vote (or not vote) has the potential to change the entire outcome.

5 of the 13 candidates will become the main governing body of our city, a city in need of strong leadership through this divisive time in our history. I know that many don’t have the time to study and get to know the candidates, and it’s easy to just skip such a small election. Please don’t make that decision. Ask voting advice from a couple of people whose views you respect.

I offer my views here, as merely my own opinion, coupled with the invested time and interest for research and observation. I have read about all the candidates, attended two of the forums (hosted by the Tea Party and Trinity Oaks), set up opinion polls and discussions in various social media groups, talked with several community residents and leaders, and personally met most of the candidates.  I have no close relationships or loyalties to any of the candidates; and my choices are based, not on which candidates I know best, or even which I like most, but solely on which candidates I believe are the best fits for this one job.

 All 13 are talented, possess leadership skills, and deserve to be commended for offering themselves to be public servants of our community.  Some, though, are more suited and/or ready than others for the office of City Council. Use my thoughts if you find them helpful,  or seek out other opinions you trust, but please vote.

My recommendations:

Definitely vote for these 3:
 Al Heggins
David Post
Tamara Sheffield

Post serves on the current council and has shown consistent wisdom and maturity. Heggins and Sheffield would be new to the council but are quite impressive candidates in their experience, passion, and knowledge of city issues, and they possess both the ability to work together with others to make changes, and the interest in listening to and understanding the concerns of all the community.

Choose the remaining 2 from the following:
Karen Alexander – current mayor, would add needed continuity
Leda Belk – former county commissioner with deputy sheriff experience
Brian Miller – current council member, would add needed continuity; good business mind; honest
Rodney Queen – 20 yrs experience in various city committees and boards; knows much about the city; heart for poverty
PJ Ricks – a popular candidate with a large following; retired educator
Latasha Wilks – Associate minister, full-time Master’s degree student; new to politics. Personally I’d like to see her get some experience in city government in other ways first, but then definitely return to run for City Council later;  I include her on this list though because she also is a popular candidate with a large following, who maybe can culturally represent a large segment of our community often unheard in local politics.

The other candidates are also impressive, just not, in my opinion, best suited for this particular job. Some have harsher, more confrontational, and/or more solo leadership styles which would likely bring divisiveness and unnecessary tension to the group dynamics. I quickly commend some of these as intelligent, knowledgeable, analytic, and/or articulate, and their leadership as valuable and needed, just better used in other venues.  Evans, I think, would make an excellent local leader but needs to gain some committee and board experience before being on the City Council. If he does not win this election, I hope he will stay in the area and  dive in as a community leader in other ways.

Mathematical Strategy for voting: Depending on your personal goal in voting, the mathematical odds might be better to vote for only one or two rather than all five; and if you are part of a group, there are other ways to make your vote count more. I’ll be glad to discuss these with you privately, as well as other questions you might have about the candidates.

Whomever you choose, please vote. Early voting Oct. 19 through Nov. 4 at the Board of Elections located at Westside Plaza (formerly the Salisbury Mall). Election Day Tues Nov. 7 (at individual precincts). Need transportation? Want someone to walk you through your first time voting? Don’t let those issues stop you. Someone will be glad to help!