Yesterday I wrote that voting in the upcoming September primary is the best way to change the Democratic Party for the better. The New Castle County Council primaries provide us an unprecedented opportunity to get involved and change the Democratic Party, the County, and America, for the better.
We have three change makers running for New Castle County Council, David Carter (6th District), Jordyn Pusey (1st District), and Dee Durham (2nd District). ALL THREE OF THESE CHANGE MAKERS ARE RUNNING AGAINST NO SHOW INCUMBENTS who rarely show up. A review of 2016 & 2017 NCC Council meeting attendance shows that the biggest no-show loser is Bill Powers, who missed a whopping 55% of the council meetings.
Ken Woods is a competitive runner-up with his dismal record of missing 44% of the meetings in his first year in office (2017). And Weiner is not much better with his record of missing 29% of the meetings. Here is the 2016-2017 attendance record rankings for all regular council and committee meetings.
While many of the missed meetings are committee meetings, keep in mind that these are where the real work gets done. Or in the case of these NO SHOW Council Members, does not get done.
The job of our elected NCC Council members is to represent the interests of voters, but how can they do that when they don’t even bother to show up.
Beyond the benefits manifest in cleaning up the Democratic Party, a large number of significant issues face the incoming New Castle County Council. The county government sets property taxes, provides parks, libraries, sewer and other services that at times take a back seat to hot button issues.
Finally, it isn’t glamorous, but the county government is in charge of land use and development. Once zoning is fucked up, and the land developed, we are stuck with the consequences pretty much forever.
These primaries are vital. Take some time to put Carter, Pusey, and Durham on the top of your list of candidates that will get your financial and volunteer support.