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Choosing candidates for local elections can be difficult when the race is too “small” to be covered by even local media.
We are a group of long term Gladstone residents who have been following local government for many years. Here are our voting recommendations and a brief explanation of why we’re making these recommendations.
City Council Position #2:
We recommend a vote for Maria Mitchell. Mitchell has spent years volunteering in the community, including serving on the Community Center Advisory Board, Gladstone Library Foundation, and Library Advisory Committee. Mitchell has spent her career working in local libraries, and has a track record of responsibly serving all people with sensible leadership. Mitchell has prepared for becoming a city councilor by regularly attending city council meetings and familiarizing herself with the business of the city. Maria Mitchell is poised to hit the ground running and serve all residents of the city with responsible leadership.
We strongly advise against a vote for the other candidate in this race, Bill Osburn. Osburn is a far right extremist that has put himself forward as a candidate in almost every election in Gladstone and Clackamas County for the past several years, and voters have rejected him time and time again. Here are just a few reasons:
Osburn notes in the voter’s pamphlet that he has experience on the Traffic Safety Committee, but neglects to share that he was removed from this committee for ethical violations.
Osburn does not report his campaign expenditures as required by law. In this and previous elections, Osburn has spent money campaigning via text message, mailers, etc. that are not reported to the state as campaign expenditures.
The deeper concern with Osburn as a candidate is that he is dedicated his time to dividing the community through extremist rhetoric, and the dirtiest mud slinging the city has seen in the way he attacks those who don’t adhere to his extremist views. The city needs leaders who are committed to building bridges, not deepening divides in our community.
Council Position #3:
We recommend a vote for Gabrielle Blaug. Her experience as a small business owner and project manager has given her skills to build consensus and find solutions to the challenges facing the city. Blaug has volunteered for the city for years on the Budget, Audit, and Traffic Safety Committees, as well as volunteering at multiple community events. Blaug is currently serving as City Councilor and has done an excellent job steering the city in a positive direction through her balanced leadership. As a member of the Leaders for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (LEDIC), Blaug represents Gladstone’s interests at the County level.
Unfortunately we don’t believe Blaug’s opponent, Greg Alexander, is qualified to serve as City Councilor. Alexander’s track record as City Councilor shows that he’s not interested in serving all Gladstone residents. Specifically:
Dividing the community by initiating a request to institute (exclusively) Christian prayer at City Council Meetings.
Alexander was resistant to the City Council’s goal of diversity and inclusion training.
Alexander fought against the city issuing proclamations to community members and organizations (including local schools and veterans) because of his concern that someone might ask for a proclamation recognizing Pride.
While we appreciate Alexander’s willingness to volunteer his time at various community events, his unwillingness to serve ALL Gladstone residents makes him unfit to serve as City Councilor.
Council Position #6:
We recommend a vote for Kaleb Eisele. Eisele is well known in the community as a bridge builder (he literally has a podcast called Bridges Over Walls). Eisele works for a very conservative religious organization, while championing progressive values like community affordability, inclusion, and respect. He has made a career out of bringing people of different beliefs together for the common good. Gladstone desperately needs a leader like Eisele.
We do not recommend a vote for Mindy Garlington, who currently holds this seat.
Garlington was the only vote against expanding Gladstone Urban Renewal Plan Amendment in September, which captured more than $10,000,000 in funding for Gladstone without raising new taxes. If the rest of the City Council hadn’t overridden her objection, this money would have been sent to Clackamas County and other government agencies instead of being spent here in Gladstone. Our community can’t afford a leader who is literally willing to give money away that would otherwise be spent in Gladstone.
Garlington does not always thoroughly research issues before city council, which can lead to odd questions and bogus claims that would be easily resolved with a little good faith research. We need a councilor who is interested in doing the work to find solutions for our city, not try to create “gotcha” moments at council meetings.
We need leaders who are willing to set aside partisan ideology and serve all people in Gladstone. We need leaders who are focused on increasing the quality of life for Gladstone families, and who prioritize affordability so that people who want to live in Gladstone can afford to. We need leaders who will enact policies that support existing small businesses and who will create an environment where even more can thrive.
For these reasons we recommend casting your ballots for Maria Mitchell, Gabrielle Blaug, and Kaleb Eisele for Gladstone City Council.
Additional Resources:
Vote411.org is a non-partisan organization that supplies information provided by candidates to supplement the Voter’s Pamphlet.
Olcv.org is the Oregon League of Conservation Voters and their website provides information about local and statewide races.
Voting recommendations provided by your neighbors:
Tracy Todd
Ginger Zimtbaum
Angela Riley
Tracy Hill
Sarah Wolthers
Leslie Robinette
Marna Barnes
Brian Proski
Kristin Bowen
Patrick McMahon
Mindy Proski
Kalea Ortiz
Susannah Rowlette
Faith Burlingame
Lisa Eirene
Kelley Chaney
Shelly Mortimer
Vanessa Huckaby
Veronica Reichle
Cierra Cook
April Younglove
Kandi Tracy
Gary Todd