Below are the results of the Spring 2023 Primary, as per Eau Claire County Clerk’s office:
I would like to congratulate Mmes. Kurtz, Geske, Anderson, and Mattson, who are continuing on to the general election. Obviously, I will not be joining them. As the lowest vote recipient, I’m out.
My percentage of the vote dropped a substantial 60.93%, from 16.97% of the vote last cycle to a mere 10.34% of the vote this cycle, while at the same time the total number of voters actually increased by 162.82%. In fact, I received one less vote than I did last cycle, when I was running alone against Mr. Wright, which saddens and surprises me, as I spent roughly eight times more time out there, pounding pavement, knocking on doors, and listening to and talking with my fellow community members, all at the expense of my own family’s time with me.
I will still be waiting and watching for the Village Board election results when that time comes after April 4th, but as I received half as many votes for that board last time as I did for the school board, I won’t be holding my breath.
This is, frankly, disheartening to me, to fare so poorly. I understand that my presentation can be abrasive, and that I’m often times saying things that people don’t want to hear. It’s only because I care so much that I say these things, because I feel that they need to be said when nobody else seems to be speaking these truths. Everything that I do comes from a place of trying to improve things, to make them better, for our children.
However, the electorate, my fellow citizens, don’t believe that I am the one to fill that role this year, and I must accept that.
I will continue to try to reach out to you all one-on-one, time permitting, and to have the conversations that are necessary to learn just what it is that my fellow Fall Creek residents are seeking, so that I can be a better representative to you, and try to understand what it is exactly that you all are looking for. I’ve been told during my campaign that the people want to hear only positive things, fluff and smiles, and that they turn on ANY serious discussion or criticism, even constructive criticism, and that I was foolish to try to bring up such things. I didn’t want to believe that, as I was more optimistic about my fellow citizen’s desire to have serious civil discussions about important topics regarding the District’s well-being. I never was one to hold a “Pollyanna” viewpoint about things, I’ve always tried to be a realist. But, perhaps these results are proof that I was wrong, and that that viewpoint is what is actually desired by the people.
Regardless, with this utter failure, I can no longer justify spending so much time away from my family to attend and record meetings that the electorate does not appear to want me at. It is my hopes that the boards will voluntarily pick up this practice, and push to increase transparency in our local governments. I still believe that there is a deep-rooted desire in our hearts for us to know what’s going on around us, and not just what decisions are made, but HOW they are made.
I am not going away, I never will. I care too much to do that. However, I will be substantially quieter for the near future, and perhaps that’s for the best for everyone. My only regret is that I won’t be in any position to serve the community for the next year in a way that I’m confident that I could have done well in, if given the chance.