Paean To Local Pols

Two years ago I posted some thoughts about how grateful we should be to to citizens who answer the call to public service and stand for election. Just by filing for election, they serve the cause of Democracy.

Candidate filing for municipal office in North Carolina ended at noon yesterday. For the Town of Oriental, thirteen citizens filed to compete for five seats on the Town Board of Commissioners. Two filed to run for mayor.

We should celebrate them all.

That being said, those of us who vote need to remember we are not selecting a homecoming queen. The six candidates we elect will have real legal authority and real responsibilities. The decisions they make can affect what kind of Town we live in for the foreseeable future - months, years, decades or in some cases forever.

Selecting the Town's governing body is not a trivial matter. We each have our own criteria for candidates. Here are some of mine:

1. Commitment to the residents and to the future of the Town;

2. Attention to details;

3. Planning ability;

4. Sound, mature judgment;

5. Management and oversight ability;

6. Willingness to review key officials, including attorney;

7. Pursues and recognizes excellence;

8. Listens to citizens and exchanges information with them. Openly.

Some of our incumbents are deficient by these criteria. If I criticize any of them, remember: It isn't personal - it's business.

I started this blog while I still served on the Town Board. I did not want to play my cards close to my vest. I was happy for voters to know where I stood. I was equally happy for other members of the Board to know. If I was working on a proposal, I wanted the public to read it. Not that my drafts were "take it or leave it" ideas, but I wanted to exchange views. Waving arms and shouting at meetings isn't conducive to sharing. And ad hoc actions during meetings often turn out badly. I put one of my drafts on the Town web site once and caught a lot of flack for it. That's when I started the blog. I encourage every Town Board member to follow suit. I dare them to follow suit.