Amy and I have always believed in this value and importance of voting. If there was any doubt about how this can impact our society, that doubt was obliterated in the 2016 election.
Boulder has an odd-year election cycle so our local elections are happening between October 16, 2017 (ballots get mailed) and November 7, 2017 (the last day to vote). Historically, less than half of the registered voters in town have voted in our local elections. A group of us, led by Engage Boulder hope that meaningfully increases (both the registered voters and the ones who choose to vote) this year.
Having lived and worked here for almost 22 years (longer than I’ve lived anywhere else by a wide margin), I now feel like I understand the strengths and weaknesses of Boulder. I get the difference of opinions about the long-term view of the city. I think we are living in an amazing place, but we have a lot of work to do to both keep it amazing and have it continue to evolve in a healthy, productive, and successful way.
As a result, I believe that our city council election is critically important. In the past, I’ve voted but I have not been public about my endorsements, nor have I put much energy into helping the candidates I endorse get elected. This election feels different for me, partly because I’m now thinking a lot about the long-term health of Boulder, but also because I feel like the low voter turnout in past elections shows that the broader population is not necessarily being represented.
I’ve decided to endorse Jan Burton, Eric Budd, Jill Grano, Mark McIntyre, and Bill Rigler.
These are the same endorsements being made by Open Boulder, Better Boulder, and Engage Boulder, three organizations that I support along with a number of other community leaders.
We have chosen to endorse these five candidates because of their commitments to bring visionary and practical strategies to:
- Create more housing and transportation for all Boulder residents;
- Make our streets and paths safer;
- Meet Boulder’s carbon reduction goals;
- Keep Boulder open for entrepreneurs and the ecosystem that encourages them;
- Make Boulder attractive for creative people, in the arts, research, and elsewhere;
- Maintain a balance of conservation and recreation access on our open space.
While I don’t necessarily agree with every position of each of these candidates, I strongly believe they are all smart, thoughtful, willing to engage, and capable of thinking long-term about what is good for our city and community.
Voting in Boulder is easy. If you haven’t registered to vote, please register now. And, Engage Boulder is having voter-oriented events several times a week between now and the election – get involved!