A paid political endorsement letter from Dawn Richards
I’m writing to recommend Kelly Purvis for the City Council vacancy for the following reasons:
With 11 years of City employment, Kelly has earned a firm grasp on how our local government functions. Given that this is a temporary, short-term appointment, it is vital that the candidate have a thorough knowledge of our local government and how it runs.
And, given the fact that half the Council members are new, a knowledge of civic affairs functioning is crucial.
Kelly has a proven track record of getting things done. One of the most important initiatives was her role of community liaison and coordinator of the Neighbor-2-Neighbor program during the pandemic, when our City faced a new threat in the grip of national panic. She was also instrumental in coordinating vaccine and testing sites, and helping the homebound receive needed services. Other roles include the Downtown Beautification Project and AEP-6 survey for Californians for the Arts, which provided quantitative data on the economic impact of cultural arts on local businesses.
While a few elections have shown a disadvantage to incumbents, numerous well-designed and long-term studies show a clear advantage to them. In fact, in many national election cycles, incumbents have won over 90% of the time due to the advantages of recent name recognition on the ballot, more media coverage, and candidates’ previously established campaign finance coverage. Recent candidates who ran a campaign for the currently filled seats would have an unfair advantage when running for the next election. It’s essential to our local democracy for elections to be fairly run, with all candidates having an equal start.
As a 30-year resident and Island Icon, Kelly has worked with numerous City organizations, including CUSD, CSF, CHA, MainStreet, and the Residential Standards Improvement Program, among others. As it currently stands, the City Council has two brand new members who have never served on Council. Having the vacant position filled with a candidate of long-time residency, and who has held a city position entailing a working knowledge of local government, would be a wise move.
Dawn Richards
I write this as an individual and not as a city commissioner or member of any organization.
