I have been blogging about this city government for over 15 years, I may not be an expert on all it’s ins and outs, but I have watched its deterioration from an open government.

I used to think the Munson administration was bad, but he was a light weight in comparison to the last two mayors who have destroyed any shred of transparency and open government.

This is why voting for the ‘Democracy’ candidates for council is important, Janet Brekke, Emmett Reistroffer, Cody Ingle and Pam Cole.

We need to bring openness back and shine a light, we also need to put the mayor back at city hall to run the day to day operations and keep out of the council’s policy objectives. This isn’t an ask, this is how the charter is written. The mayor runs the city by directing its employees to implement the policies the council adopts. I have argued for a long time the past two mayors have been violating charter over and over again, and the rubber stamp council has been derelict in their duties of writing good policy and controlling the purse strings.

If we don’t elect at least 3 of these candidates you will see a downward spiral to darkness and we will never be able to crawl out of that hole.

What would happen;

• Government action will be done in complete silence.

• The mayor will introduce all policy and his hand picked rubber stamp puppets will implement it.

• Taxes and fees will skyrocket to keep up with the reckless spending on special interest projects.

• Crime will go thru the roof.

• The core neighborhoods will crumble to dust.

I know this sounds dire, but we are already moving in these directions and it needs to be stopped. While a 4/4 council might not be able to stop all bad legislation (The mayor can still break ties and veto) it will at least be slowed and hopefully we can turn this around.

What does mean to elect the ‘Democracy’ candidates?

• More open and transparent government (which saves us millions).

• More interaction with the citizenry to shape policy.

• Building density and cleaning up our core neighborhoods.

• Fiscal responsibility and holding the line on handouts to wealthy developers, banksters and bondsters.

• A strategic plan for the city written by the council with interaction from the citizens.

• Creative ways to build affordable and workforce housing.

• Safer streets and neighborhoods.

• A modern, safe and practical bike trail.

• More opportunities for small businesses.

I am not asking you to vote for the ‘Democracy’ candidates, I’m BEGGING YOU!

After Tuesday, if we don’t elect these 4 candidates, we can’t go in reverse, and I am afraid Sioux Falls will never be the same.

Make no mistake, beating an incumbent city councilor is not an easy task, ask Jensen who had to spend $127K and lucking out by having primary voters (who rarely vote in city elections) help him achieve the task.

Obviously it doesn’t hurt that Soehl now has two challengers, a well-intentioned, all around family guy and a fierce citizen advocate. We could likely see them in the run-off or one of them crushing the 51% threshold.

But what really makes Soehl beatable is that he really isn’t an incumbent because the Central district he was elected in doesn’t exist anymore and you really don’t need the McKennan park elite’s vote to win in Central.

The re-districting commission now have included parts of Whittier and Cathedral neighborhoods. Match that with Pettigrew Heights and you have pretty strong working class voters.

While it will be a challenge for the other two candidates to battle with an incumbent, Soehl is really an incumbent with NO home and will NOT be re-elected.

Some very good news today in the city council races. Both young men are incredible progressive advocates for citizens and they are going to make this race fun to watch.

Riestroffer is running for Central District. He is a consultant for the Cannabis industry and has previously run for the City Council I think against Rex Rolfing.

Ingle is running for SE District.

About

I currently work as the IT/App Support Specialist at the Center for Family Medicine, where I help physicians and residents best utilize our Electronic Medical Record system to ensure quality patient care. I also help in daily IT issues, such as printing errors and random computer glitches (technology is great). I am passionate about healthcare and addressing the disparities seen in it. Data analysis and population health are my biggest professional joys.

I am a board member of Pathways to Inclusive and Equitable Workplaces, which strives to educate the business community in Sioux Falls on diversity, equity, and inclusion. I am the Secretary of Sioux Falls Pride, and am a strong advocate for marginalized people groups. I strive to help lift up voices of those who feel as though they have no voice, and to help bring equity to all humans.

Here is the list of candidates. While Emmett is NOT listed on the city website, he did confirm to me that the city clerk confirmed he had enough signatures. I guess Immanuel Bassey did not have enough signatures to make the ballot in the SE District.

Listing of Current Candidates
(Alphabetical Order (Last Name) by Office)
Name Office
Taneeza Islam Mayor
Paul TenHaken Mayor
David Zokaites Mayor
Bobbi Andera At-Large Council Member “A”
Janet Brekke At-Large Council Member “A”
Sarah Cole At-Large Council Member “A”
Pam Cole At-Large Council Member “B”
Rich Merkouris At-Large Council Member “B”
David Barranco Southeast District Council Member
Cody Ingle Southeast District Council Member
Jim Burzynski Central District Council Member
Emmett Reistroffer Central District Council Member
Curt Soehl Central District Council Member