All politics are local.....

Well, I have been missing in action over the last few weeks. Therefore, I haven't posted a blog in some time. Of course, the world did indeed keep on ticking during my absence. We have experienced everything from Halloween to Sarah Palin's "Going Rogue" book release (did anyone catch her on Oprah? If you didn't, you missed a treat) to a tragic shooting at Fort Hood to even another election cycle. A little over a year ago, Americans elected a brand new president and decided to drive down that road aptly named Change. The election of Barack Obama as the first African-American president was in one word.....amazing. The feeling that many people had is still hard to capture in words even today. A year later, we have recently gone to the polls yet again. However, the climate was very different. As I went to cast my ballot on Nov. 2nd, I was able to walk right in with no lines. I was in and out in under 10 minutes. I couldn't help but feel a certain sadness at the low voter turn out yesterday. I understand that the majority of people felt no need to visit their local polling place given that the office of president is not up for grabs this year. However, I couldn't help but ask the question, what about our local governments?

The phrase, all politics are local, is an understatement. Just about everything that directly affects us and our communities is determined by local government. It is true that funds for schools, roads, transportation, etc. do come from the federal government. However, it is generally one's representative in Congress fighting for these monies. I recently received my property tax bill, and I was welcomed with the news that taxes have indeed increased (an interesting phenomenon considering home values have been on the decline). These increases were necessary for Atlantans to get back necessary services such as police and fire that had been decreased over previous months due to budget cuts. Now, the obvious cause for these cuts is the economic recession with which our country is currently plagued. However, another reason for these budgetary cuts comes from financial mismanagement of city funds. The out going mayor of Atlanta has been an asset to this city. There are many problems that she chose to tackle head on such as the massive sewer problems that exist in Atlanta. However, Atlanta still faces major problems when it comes to crime, transportation, and our public hospital (Grady). Going into the Nov. 2nd election, all the candidates main focus was crime in the city of Atlanta. Every debate or town hall meeting centered on the increase in crime in the city (although, there are some reports that show a decrease in overall crime in the city which makes me wonder if there are just certain segments of the city being targeted that weren't before. Things that make you go hmmm....).

Going into election day, Atlanta had 4 serious contenders for the office of mayor. 3 of whom were black and 1 white candidate. Atlanta is a very interesting city in that residents of the city still maintain communities that from the outside looking in could be considered segregated. However, there are those few communities interspersed throughout the city that enjoy a fairly integrated existence. This city still very much views politics along racial lines. For the past 35 years, Atlanta has had an African-American mayor. For the first time, in a very long time the white candidate for mayor is the front runner and appears as if she will indeed be Atlanta's next mayor. The last hurdle will be the run-off election scheduled for December 2nd. Mary Norwood (the white candidate) will square off against Kasim Reed (the black candidate who no one suspected would rally on to be in a run off). Mary Norwood has served on the Atlanta city council for a number of years before her mayoral bid. Kasim Reed serves in the Georgia State Senate. The question for many Atlantans is who is the real "change" candidate. Does Mary Norwood represent change simply because of the color of her skin? Is Atlanta ready to truly embrace a white mayor again? Does Kasim represent change because he hasn't been involved in city politics like his opponent? Should the new mayor reflect the changing racial demographics of the city? These are good questions, but are they really relevant in the grand scheme of things. As a resident of Atlanta, I am most concerned with discovering which candidate has a true vision for my city. I want a mayor who will address the problems that I mentioned earlier and work to find solutions to these problems. Ultimately, these are the same issues that will continue to affect all residents of Atlanta. Therefore, why such a low voter turn out on election day? As citizens, we must become engaged with our local political processes. Last November, the country started down Change Road. Now is not the time to decide to take a detour by not participating in elections. To residents of Atlanta, we have another opportunity to get back in the driver's seat come Dec. 2nd. For everyone else, your time is coming soon. If not in the near future, then November 2010 is only a year away.