The race for the Position of Council President in Kennewick city is heating up. Last week voters went to the polls and chose three men to represent them on the city council. They are Steve Gilli, Robert Laver, and incumbent Jon Allison. All three men have campaign websites, and it appears that each candidate is trying to win this city election by emphasizing different points on his site.
Jon Allison seems to be the one person that everybody seems to like. He has a simple site, and it only shows pictures of him and his wife. However, some political observers say that he doesn’t seem to spend enough time on his site. Many city residents say they want someone who will be more engaged in the community and take care of the needs of the people living in the area. Jon Allison fits this bill perfectly.
Robert Laver is the other candidate for the Position of Council President. He is well-known within the city as someone who is able to get things done. He has also been a business owner for many years. Robert Laver’s website does show pictures of him with other business people, but does not include any pictures of him and his wife. One of the videos that you can see on his site does show him alongside his wife. It shows him at various events, so it appears that he does entertain the idea of becoming a city councilor.
Steve Gilli is the third candidate for the position of Council President. He ran against incumbent Jon Allison in the last election, but lost by a wide margin. According to one political observer, Gilli may have underestimated the support that he had for his campaign. He was re-elected easily. This raises the question as to why he is running again this time.
The other two candidates for the council at this point are Robert Carpau and Mark Kern. They each have different platforms that they promote. Carpau supports a mixed-use approach to development around the downtown area, including retail, residential, and office space. He believes that a mixed-use approach is the best way to keep the traffic moving around the downtown area and generate the needed business. Kern wants to tear down part of the K Mart parking lot in order to build retail space.
The other three candidates for the city council at this point are Allison, Laver, and Kern. They each will be seeking to win the election by a large number of votes. There are rumors that many people are registered to vote for several different candidates. Therefore, the turnout could turn out to be very high. Many people who live in Kennewick are also registered to vote for several other offices nearby, such as the cities of Urbandale and North Poppleton. These people may end up voting in the city council election as well.
Some residents worry about voting in the city council election, because it does not affect them directly. However, they feel that it is important that they vote for one of the two people who will be seated on the board of the city. If no one gets a majority, then there would be an imbalance in the power structure in the city. This could lead to a lack of rule of law and less safety in the city.
Kennewick is a small city on the Swan River. It has a population of about thirteen hundred people. With so many businesses in the downtown area, it is easy to see why the city council would need to make some changes in order to attract more commerce into the area.