On the eve of Emerson Valley’s 2019 mayoral election, we’re going to take a look at two of our residents who are voting for opposing candidates. First up is Richard Everett, a partner at the law firm Thurston, Everett & Dolan. He’s voting for Anthony Faulk, the Republican challenger in the race. Here’s what Mr. Everett said about why he’s voting for Mr. Faulk when the Emerson Valley Gazette spoke to him earlier today:

Richard Everett: I’m tired of the Democrats like Jim Foley taking money out of my pocket for useless garbage like the homeless shelter or that brand new firehouse. The old one was fine!

Emerson Valley Gazette: The old one burned down, Mr. Everett.

Everett: It burned down ’cause all the extra tax paperwork was like kindling! It lit the whole place up like a Christmas tree the second someone’s cigarette ashes missed the ashtray.

The Gazette: But it’s against the law to smoke indoors…

Everett: Yet another reason the Democrats need to go!

The Gazette: Don’t you want to say something about how Mr. Faulk promised to deal with traffic downtown? Or that he saidthat Jorus Tech will invest several millions of dollars into the local economy?

Everett: Yeah! Exactly! You get it, kid.

The Gazette: And you heard about the Mayor Foley scandal, right?

Everett: Oh, yeah, I did. He’s just a hateful guy. He has nothing but hate for us, so why would we want him to stay our mayor?

The Gazette: A very salient point, Mr. Everett.

Now we’ll give Yolanda Perez a chance to tell us why she’s voting for the incumbent. She owns and operates Downtown Market, a local grocery store on Main Street. Here’s why she said she’s voting for the Democratic candidate, Mayor James Foley:

Yolanda Perez: I’m voting for Mayor Foley because he’s been an unwavering supporter of small businesses like my own. If Republicans like Tony Faulk and his ilk had their way, our town would be taken over by international conglomerates and mega-corporations.

The Gazette: How would you respond to someone bringing up how Emerson Valley’s economy has been stagnating, and that catering to small business owners has kept us from being able to stimulate new growth?

Perez: I’d say that a leveling-off is pretty normal. Our economy was in the gutter when Mayor Foley took over in 2004. It’s gone steadily up ever since. It didn’t go up this year, but it didn’t drop, either. It stayed the same. That’s not a bad thing.

The Gazette: But Mr. Faulk will bring tens of millions of dollars into Emerson Valley. And Jorus Tech hires more new employees from EVU than any other college in the country.

Perez: Yeah, but doesn’t it seem a little shady for a corporate CEO to run for mayor while promising his company’s going to give millions to the town where he’s running for office? It feels a lot like a bribe.

The Gazette: It’s not a bribe. Mr. Faulk has promised Jorus Tech will spend that money in Emerson Valley no matter who wins.

Perez: Okay…but isn’t the implication that if he doesn’t get elected, that money’ll dry up?

The Gazette: I’ll concede that it means there likely won’t be addition funds used to stimulate the economy. That’s his prerogative, though. As long as he delivers the initial package, it’s all perfectly legal.

Perez: I don’t know. It still seems real shady.

The Gazette: Well, what about Mayor Foley’s scandal? Don’t you take offense to being called an idiot by him?

Perez: He wasn’t talking to me. If you got offended by being called an idiot, maybe that means you are an idiot. And I sure don’t care that Miriam Rook got her feelings hurt. She does have way too much influence in this town.

So there it is, folks. The sane choice tomorrow is Anthony Faulk. The people still voting for Mayor Foley despite what should be a career-ending scandal have proven they don’t care about Emerson Valley and they don’t care about its people. They are the ones who have benefitted from the mayor’s narrow-minded policies, so why would they want to get rid of him?

If a major scandal can’t slow Mayor Foley down, then it’s up to the citizens of Emerson Valley to stop him. Speak with your vote. Tell local politicians that we won’t settle for someone who despises his constituents and refuses to do anything but maintain the status quo. Tell them that we want Mr. Faulk as our mayor.

-William Cooper, Human Interest, Emerson Valley Gazette