Google

Wednesday, October 28, 2009

On the Verge of Election Day...

Returning West for a moment, we remember the historic Ward elections underway. Yes there is a Mayoral race underway, too. However, the contest between Mayor Sarno and City Councilor Bud Williams is decidedly soporific. Bill Dusty summed it up best with the title of a recent article "Sarno Vs. Williams: Something Old, Nothing New." The City Council elections, however are interesting for the very reason that at least nine of the Council's new thirteen seats will be filled by new (or often more accurately non-incumbent) faces.

That being case, WMassP&I has dispatched emails loaded with probing questions to all of the candidates for City Council in Springfield who have email addresses available on the Web. We want to applaud the City Council candidates who have published web page in this most crucial election. Some may say, especially in the Ward races, that such an effort is unnecessary. WMassP&I would argue that even in the poorest neighborhoods, having a means to communicate with candidate could be priceless especially for those who may find it impossible to attend scheduled campaign events. Even so, how would they find out where the events are? Community bulletin boards ain't what they used to be.

We will post the responses from those that we receive. The following candidates we could not contact via email.

Ward 1: Gumersindo Gomez and Zaida Luna.

Ward 3: Martin Loughman

Ward 4: Norman Oliver and E. Henry Twiggs

Ward 5: Clodo Concepcion and Carol Lewis-Caulton

Ward 7: Michael Patrick Rodgers

Ward 8: Orlando Ramos

At-Large: Tim Rooke, Jose Tosado, Thomas Ashe, Robert Francesca, Morris Jones, Vera O'Connor.

Twiggs, Ramos, and Ashe all have websites, but they did not list any contact information or a contact forum appropriate for submission of these questions. Some of the candidates we have contacted do not websites and/or use an alternative web presence, but we were able to secure an email address.

This list is not meant to embarrass the candidates, but rather to invite them to contact WMassP&I so that they may answer the questions we have put forward for our city officials-to-be. If any of our readers know the candidates listed personally please encourage them to contact WMassP&I or submit their email yourself to
wmasspi@yahoo.com!

This election is too important to sit by the wayside or rest on your laurels! Stay tuned for candidate responses and endorsements in the next week!!!

No comments: