Indivisible Skagit would like to thank candidates for participating in our Local Elections Committee’s forum on June 22, 2017.
The input received from audience members at that meeting factored significantly into the endorsement recommendations that our committee provided to the greater Indivisible Skagit organization.
We are pleased to announce the following endorsements from Indivisible Skagit for Mount Vernon City Council:
- Ward 1:
- Shelley Acero and Iris Carias (both candidates are endorsed and we will fully endorse whichever one makes it to the November election)
- Ward 2:
- Jorge Manzanera
- Ward 3:
- Melissa Beaton
- At-Large:
- Richard BrocksmithWe have also attached a copy of the evaluation document which explains the rationale for these recommendations.
Several of our members have expressed their willingness to work on behalf of our endorsed candidates.
If your campaign has specific areas or needs for assistance that you’d like us to promote to our members, please let us know.
- Richard BrocksmithWe have also attached a copy of the evaluation document which explains the rationale for these recommendations.
We appreciate your commitment to running for office, and working for the benefit of the Mount Vernon community.
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LOCAL ELECTIONS COMMITTEE – INDIVISIBLE SKAGIT EVALUATION \
AND ENDORSEMENT OF MOUNT VERNON CITY COUNCIL CANDIDATES After the presidential election of 2016, Indivisible Skagit attracted a wide range of people concerned about the deterioration of the American political climate.
The Local Elections Committee of Indivisible Skagit is a group of people who consider local elected office important to the democratic process – to address significant local issues, to enhance citizen engagement in government, and to encourage new candidates for public office at all levels.
Our aim is to see local elected officials creatively use the powers of their offices in ways that benefit the community, with respect for all individuals.1 This year, our first year, we focused on the Mount Vernon City Council positions. We hope in the future to be able to expand our reach to many more elections. However, our attention this year is on four Mount Vernon City Council positions up for election and the nine candidates vying for them. This number of candidates alone is a positive change, since contested elections can bring new ideas and a healthy debate about them. All candidates are to be congratulated on running for office. The Local Elections Committee has evaluated the candidates on: community involvement, hard-working/energetic, collaborative, commitment to civility, keeping public informed, understanding issues, willingness to learn, problem-solving, and electability. All members of the public who attended the Local Election Committee candidates’ forum on June 22, 2017 were given the opportunity to rank and comment on the candidates. References below to “rankings” and “ratings” come out of the public responses to the candidates’ forum. Taking together the input of committee members and the attending members of the public, we make the following evaluations and endorsements: Ward I – Three candidates: Shelley Acero; Iris Carias; Ken Quam (incumbent). Shelley Acero works for the City Attorney’s Office in the City of Burlington as a paralegal and risk manager. Her ratings were mostly at the top end of the spectrum provided. She rates particularly highly as a problem-solver and someone willing to learn. She is new to elected office but demonstrates a collaborative attitude, government experience and civility to her opponent(s). Iris Carias is an advocate for domestic abuse survivors and she has many ties to the community. She emphasizes a desire to reach out to the Hispanic members of the community, and ensure that they are included in city life. She has a great passion for public education, and the benefits it can bring. Her ratings were above average (although not as high as Shelley Acero’s) and she ranked well in community involvement, keeping the public informed, and being collaborative. Ken Quam, the incumbent, has served the City for several years. His background is as a small business owner. His ratings were in the middle of the spectrum provided, with his strongest suits being community involvement and problem solving. 1 All candidates were asked about and pledged not to engage in discriminatory practices. Endorsement: Ken Quam has served the city well and his service is appreciated. However, the two first-time candidates offer new perspectives and energy on city issues. Iris Carias offers outreach and inclusiveness that are important in these difficult times. Shelley Acero has significant experience in local government, and demonstrates an ability to foster intergovernmental relationships and an understanding of local issues. Both of these candidates bring important skills to bear, of equivalent weight. We therefore endorse both Shelley Acero and Iris Carias for Ward One. Ward Two – Two candidates: Jorge Manzanera and Gary Molenaar (incumbent). Jorge Manzanera is a dispute mediation professional. He serves on a number of community organization boards, as well as volunteering as a coach and mentor. He was open-minded in his search for solutions to some of the local issues raised by the audience, especially homelessness (which was on everyone’s mind that evening). His ratings were largely at the top end of the spectrum, with high marks for community involvement,
This year, our first year, we focused on the Mount Vernon City Council positions. We hope in the future to be able to expand our reach to many more elections. However, our attention this year is on four Mount Vernon City Council positions up for election and the nine candidates vying for them.
This number of candidates alone is a positive change, since contested elections can bring new ideas and a healthy debate about them. All candidates are to be congratulated on running for office. The Local Elections Committee has evaluated the candidates
All candidates are to be congratulated on running for office. The Local Elections Committee has evaluated the candidates on: community involvement, hard-working/energetic, collaborative, commitment to civility, keeping
community involvement, hard-working/energetic, collaborative, commitment to civility, keeping public informed, understanding issues, willingness to learn, problem-solving, and electability. All members of the public who attended the Local Election Committee candidates’ forum on June 22, 2017 were given the opportunity to rank and comment on the candidates. References below to “rankings” and “ratings” come out of the public responses to the candidates’ forum. Taking together the input of committee members and the attending members of the public, we make the following evaluations and endorsements: Ward I – Three candidates: Shelley Acero; Iris Carias; Ken Quam (incumbent). Shelley Acero works for the City Attorney’s Office in the City of Burlington as a paralegal and risk manager. Her ratings were mostly at the top end of the spectrum provided. She rates particularly highly as a problem-solver and someone willing to learn. She is new to elected office but demonstrates a collaborative attitude, government experience and civility to her opponent(s). Iris Carias is an advocate for domestic abuse survivors and she has many ties to the community. She emphasizes a desire to reach out to the Hispanic members of the community, and ensure that they are included in city life. She has a great passion for public education, and the benefits it can bring. Her ratings were above average (although not as high as Shelley Acero’s) and she ranked well in community involvement, keeping the public informed, and being collaborative. Ken Quam, the incumbent, has served the City for several years. His background is as a small business owner. His ratings were in the middle of the spectrum provided, with his strongest suits being community involvement and problem solving. 1 All candidates were asked about and pledged not to engage in discriminatory practices. Endorsement: Ken Quam has served the city well and his service is appreciated. However, the two first-time candidates offer new perspectives and energy on city issues. Iris Carias offers outreach and inclusiveness that are important in these difficult times. Shelley Acero has significant experience in local government, and demonstrates an ability to foster intergovernmental relationships and an understanding of local issues. Both of these candidates bring important skills to bear, of equivalent weight. We therefore endorse both Shelley Acero and Iris Carias for Ward One. Ward Two – Two candidates: Jorge Manzanera and Gary Molenaar (incumbent). Jorge Manzanera is a dispute mediation professional. He serves on a number of community organization boards, as well as volunteering as a coach and mentor. He was open-minded in his search for solutions to some of the local issues raised by the audience, especially homelessness (which was on everyone’s mind that evening). His ratings were largely at the top end of the spectrum, with high marks for community involvement, hard-working, civility, problem solving and willingness to learn. Gary Molenaar is a current city council member whose profession is barber. He has served 7 years, saying he gets the pulse of the town through his work. His ratings were above average (although not as high as Jorge Manzanera’s ratings). He was given high marks for community involvement and civility. Endorsement: Gary Molenaar’s years of service are much appreciated. His tact and good humor were evident. However, we believe Jorge Manzanera should be given the chance to serve. His many volunteer activities are impressive and demonstrate a genuine commitment to the community. He brings a fresh approach, one of bringing together all parties to find common ground and real solutions. We endorse Jorge Manzanera for Ward Two. Ward Three: Melissa Beaton is unopposed in the election for Ward Three. However, we wish to commend her involvement in the candidates’ forum and her desire to hear from the public, even though she has no opponent in her race. She has begun the learning curve of a council person with enthusiasm and an open mind. Her ratings were at the top end of the spectrum and we feel she deserves our endorsement. Endorsement: We endorse Melissa Beaton for Ward Three. At-Large: Three candidates are seeking the at-large position on the city council: Richard Brocksmith, Stacie Zinn-Roberts, and Dale Ragan (incumbent). Richard Brocksmith is director of the Skagit Watershed Council and a member of the City planning commission. His ratings were at the top end of the spectrum, with high marks for understanding of the issues, hard-working, collaborative and problem solving. He emphasizes land use planning in the city, particularly to encourage economic development downtown and to try to meet the challenges of population growth and housing affordability. Stacie Zinn-Roberts is a marketing professional. Although a relatively recent arrival, she worked on the committee to adopt a sales tax for the purpose of bringing tourism dollars directly into city coffers. She emphasizes economic development as the key to a strong city. Her ratings were above average, although not as high as Richard Brocksmith’s. She earned high marks for energy, civility and collaborative approach. Dale Ragan is the incumbent and has served the City for a number of years. He is a fiscal conservative and takes pride in the fact that the City has not increased property taxes in seven out of the last eight years. He prefers selling City property to raising property taxes. His rankings were average to above average on the spectrum, with high marks for community involvement and understanding of the issues. Endorsement: This is an impressive field of candidates. Dale Ragan has brought energy and leadership to the city council and his service is appreciated. However, we believe that it is time to try a more creative approach to City finances. Failing to adopt a 1% annual increase in property taxes has effectively cut the City’s budget since property taxes have not kept pace with the cost of living. Stacie Zinn-Roberts describes an approach based on economic development which has long-term potential but does not address many of the issues of infrastructure and personnel which face the City now. With more experience in the community, she would doubtless be able to bring her many skills to the city council. Richard Brocksmith describes a multi-faceted approach using land use planning to both encourage economic development and to create opportunities for affordable housing. He demonstrates energy, intelligence and experience on the broad scope of difficult issues that residential population growth will force on the City. We endorse Richard Brocksmith.