If you think local politics is generally a boring affair, I don’t blame you. I know what you’re thinking. City Council seems like sour-milk-toast: both boring and bitter. It’s really tough to get excited about fixing pot holes and regulating parking meters, the only person you can name is Mayor Tisdahl, and whenever something interesting happens it always seems to be about closing The Keg.
Despite this unfortunate picture, the truth is that local politics is really the place where your vote has legs. State demographics define national politics, but one vote really matters at the city level. We all get psyched up for Congressional elections, but ask yourself, when was the last time Congress made sure that your trash was taken away on time, let alone made sure they took out their own trash? As stuffy as it can seem, at least Evanston City Government gets things done.
Under the haze of dreary City Council meetings, insatiably unsatisfied squeaky wheels, and near ceaseless bickering about whether we should allow more Bed and Breakfasts – yes, that’s seriously a point of contention – there is real possibility for both good and bad to be done. Unfortunately, for the past two years, less of the former and more of the latter has been done by one City Council person in particular.
Northwestern students have been conveniently gerrymandered into several separate districts, restricting voting power. One of these districts is the 1st Ward, which encompasses the South campus dorms from Allison to Foster-Walker as well as the neighborhoods west of campus. This is the only contested election that students can vote in. Don’t stop reading now – I know you’re likely upset you can’t exact your revenge against Mayor Tisdahl via the ballot box. But you can do the next best thing. You can vote against the only City Council member she has endorsed in this coming election.
On April 9, vote for Ed Tivador for the 1st Ward City Council seat. His opponent, Judy Fiske, the current sitting City Council person for the 1st Ward, has only been a detriment to both students specifically and Evanston more broadly. She has refused Northwestern partnership and money to improve lighting off campus. She has complained about and ended efforts by Northwestern to increase safety in the neighborhoods west of campus. She has been a vocal opponent of Northwestern’s decisions to build on its own private property. She has snubbed numerous opportunities during this campaign to debate her candidate. On numerous important votes, she voted against the entirety of City Council in 8-1 decisions. She even attempted to sue the Northwestern students for voting in her first election, which she lost.
The list could go on, but word limit restricts me. In my three years of actively engaging the community as a part of my involvement with Associated Student Government, I’ve gotten to know the true side of Judy Fiske, both through personal interactions and the opinions of others in the community. Now that I have ended my role as Community Relations Vice President for ASG, I feel it is both necessary and proper that I speak out about this election.
I place my full faith in the candidacy of Ed Tivador for 1st Ward Alderman, and you should too. He is without a doubt the best choice for students and Evanston as a whole. He is a pragmatic, insightful and reasonable man with unmatched leadership experience and unbeatable qualifications. So please, on April 9, do the right thing. Go vote. Ditch Fiske. Get more with Tivador.
Steven Monacelli, Communication senior
