If you live in Salem's Ward 4 and are thinking of voting for Deanna Gwyn, I urge you to think again. Her opponent, Dynee Medlock, is a much better choice to represent you on the City Council.
A couple of Salem Reporter stories by Rachel Alexander provide the reasons. Here's three of them, based on a written Q&A where Medlock and Gwyn answered questions sent to them by Salem Reporter staff, and a devastating story, "Salem council candidate Deanna Gwyn has rarely voted, records show."
(1) Voting records. Gwyn has voted just twice in the past decade, not voting in 14 elections since 2012. When asked about this, the Salem Reporter story says:
Contacted Monday by Salem Reporter over the phone, Gwyn said a question about her voting record “caught me off guard” and asked for time to formulate a response.
In an email Tuesday, she said her lack of participation reflects feeling disengaged from the political process.
So Gwyn couldn't even give an immediate honest answer. She had to take a day to come up with an excuse other than simply not caring about voting, which probably is a lot closer to the truth than "feeling disengaged from the political process," which sounds like something her campaign manager told her to say.
By contrast, Medlock voted in every primary and general election in the past decade, missing only four special district elections.
I can't see voting for a candidate who doesn't bother to vote.
(2) Time living in Ward 4. Gwyn only moved to an apartment in Ward 4 last May, so she's lived in the area she wants to represent for less than a year. Medlock has lived in a house in Ward 4 for 14 years.
(3) Endorsements. Among the eight current city councilors and mayor, who comprise the nine-member Salem City Council, Gwyn is backed by only one person, Mayor Chuck Bennett. Medlock has four endorsements: Jackie Leung (current Ward 4 councilor), Trevor Phillips, Vanessa Nordyke and Chris Hoy, who’s currently running for mayor.
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