The aggregate Jefferson County voter is a curious creature – at least as evidenced by voting in the Nov. 6 General Election on Tuesday last.
Truth be told, I like that about you, aggregate voter – OK if I call you “Agg”? – you’re unpredictable.
To wit:
■ You voted BRIGHT RED for candidates on the Nov. 6 ballot, but BRIGHT BLUE on issues.
With 23 opportunities to choose a Democratic candidate, you only did it once, re-electing Jefferson County Collector Beth Mahn to her ninth four-year term. Have you noticed, Agg, that Mahn is the officeholder who sends you tax bills every year and comes after you if you don’t pay? She does a great job – the Leader endorsed her – but it’s a mystery why your one Democratic preference was for someone who sends bills each holiday season instead of Christmas cards.
In 2019, Mahn will be the only remaining elected Democrat serving in Jefferson County government. Uno. All seven of the county’s state representatives are now red, and both of its state senators. Ditto for its three U.S. reps and two U.S. senators. Except for Mahn, the only other Democrat in sight is state Auditor Nicole Galloway, who won her statewide election, but did not take Jefferson County.
Maybe you don’t know this, Agg, but Jefferson County was dominated by Democrats for decades, until you started knocking them down, rather violently, in the 2010 election. In the eight years since, as if in a frenzy, you’ve been stomping on nearly every Democrat who has dared to file for office, even if the work they wanted to do for you was strictly non-partisan – judging you, auditing your government’s books, enforcing your laws, filing your public records or fixing your roads.
Oh, well, your will has been done, and RED now rules. But, hey, Agg, a passel of the “Republicans” you elected (I’m thinking judges, here) were Democrats until they announced for election or re-election, simultaneously changing their skins. You didn’t mind. Everyone who made that choice still has a job.
On Nov. 6, you were about 50,000 voters strong in support of Republican candidates.
You were so RED, you were glowing.
But the same day, you defied state Republican leaders and voted, in aggregate, for BLUE reforms in legislative redistricting, campaign finance and lobbying; increasing the minimum wage; and making “medical” marijuana legally accessible.
Your RED governor asked you to approve an increase in the state gasoline tax, but along with the rest of the state, you said, “Talk to the RED hand,” and rejected it.
Moving on to the Rock Township Ambulance District, Agg, where your behavior was somewhat shocking:
■ No matter what, Republicans (really, all humans) have an aversion to higher taxes, but the district had an especially hard sell in its Nov. 6 request for a $23 million bond issue tied to a tax increase.
A prior board promised to roll back property taxes if voters passed a sales tax. Voters kept their end of the bargain, and the district did too, for a while, but then quietly killed the rebate.
New leaders discovered the broken promise and reinstated the rollback. But they didn’t pay back the money to taxpayers; instead, they asked for MORE money.
You, Agg, approved the bond issue by 65 percent when only 57.14 percent was needed. If asked to bet at 6:59 p.m. Nov. 6, one minute before the polls closed, I’d have put my money on incensed voters slapping down that tax measure like a fat West Nile mosquito.
Agg, you were discerning and forgiving. Good on you.
■ In fact, you embraced forgiveness on Election Day. You went for three Republican state legislators who had gone on record in favor of Right to Work – state reps Rob Vescovo of Arnold and Dan Shaul of Imperial, who were seeking re-election, and Mary Elizabeth Coleman of Arnold, who was challenging incumbent Democrat Mike Revis. You did this after rejecting Right to Work with a 78 percent majority in the Aug. 7 primary.
Apparently, you don’t hold a grudge.
■ Loyalty is usually a virtue, too, but sometimes, Agg, you go too far. You stayed true to your RED hearts in choosing Republican Ken Waller as your new county clerk rather than Democrat Randy Holman, the former county assessor who has nearly two years of experience as county clerk and is a quality employee, no matter what job he takes on.
Meanwhile, Waller has been neck-deep in bad publicity because of his swordfights with the Jefferson County Council.
To your credit, Agg, you came close on Holman. Waller had 44,815 votes to Holman’s 42,183, a 2,632-vote margin, the second-best finish for a county Democrat.
But this is what I wish you could understand, Agg. Elections for most county officeholders should be viewed as job interviews. Skill, experience, willingness to work hard and people skills are required, not partisanship. I can guarantee, if you’d had a chance to interview those two candidates face to face, you’d have picked Holman.
That being said, Waller has experience in county government and some good ideas for the County Clerk’s Office. His election in no way compares to some recent travesties when you replaced experienced and able Democratic judges with ill-equipped Republicans. That didn’t happen in every case, necessarily, but believe me, it happened.
It was simply RED and BLUE to you, and you were seeing RED.
But, I’m not going to stay mad at you, Agg. You intrigue me, and I look forward to getting to know you better.
Let’s do this again, say, in two years.
