Ranked Choice Voting Campaigning Report for Saturday, July 22

The Rank MI Vote logo.

I campaigned for Rank MI Vote at the Bank Street Farmers' Market on Saturday morning from 8:40 to 9:00. As I have experienced in the past, the early morning farmers' market crowd is focused on their chores and not interested in distractions, so I didn't get much accomplished during my 20 minutes there.

I then took a 20 minute walk out to Mayors' Riverfront Park for the quarterly expanded polystyrene foam (#6 plastic) and electronics recycling drop-off event. Mark Oudersluys from First United Methodist Church (FUMC) and Tobi Hanna-Davies from ISAAC were among the volunteers. Attendance was not as great as I had experienced in the past, when there would be a long line of vehicles backed up to Mills Street. City Commissioner Jeanne Hess and Wayne Conner from FUMC were among those dropping off. By 10:45, the number of visitors driving through had fallen to a trickle, so I decided to go back to the farmers' market.

My second visit to the farmers' market was much more productive. The later crowd is much more interested in wandering and engaging. For interested non-city residents, I again had them take cell phone pictures of the Rank MI Vote website address on my large sign and ask them to sign up for the e-mail list. Among those were people from Berrien County, Van Buren County, and Flint. The guy from Flint was interested in a ranked choice voting petition drive there. I told him to contact leadership through the website for a potential Flint RCV petition drive in 2025. I didn't see any people of note at the farmers' market on Saturday morning. The only person I even recognized was Steve Glista, a Westnedge Hill neighborhood resident and bicycling enthusiast, who was a semi-regular attendee and participant in City Commission meetings during 2022.

The lunch I ate during the Gun Violence Resource and Resilience Rally at Rockwell Park.

I then took an approximately 40 minute walk out to Rockwell Park for the Gun Violence Resource and Resilience Rally. As pictured above, I ate two hamburgers, two Parmesan chicken wings, roasted vegetables, and macaroni and cheese for lunch at the rally.

All the incumbent City Commissioners who are up for reelection were in attendance: Esteven Juarez (his event), Chris Praedel with one of his three sons, Jeanne Hess with her husband. County Commissioners Tami Rey and Jen Strebs also came. Tami was circulating a nominating petition for someone, presumably a Kalamazoo City Commissioner candidate. Tami sat down with me for a few minutes and I shared with her my plans if I'm elected, including modifications of zoning ordinances that artificially restrict the housing supply, resulting in higher housing costs for everyone else.

Mayoral candidate David Anderson showed up at 4:20, after Chris Praedel left, meaning that there wasn't a quorum of the City Commission present at any time during the rally. Newcomer James Ayers showed up around 5:45, as we were putting the tables and chairs away on a trailer. He lives in the neighborhood and showed up to the playground with his child, unaware that the event was taking place, despite the fact that it was announced during the last City Commission meeting. So, whether intentional or not, all 5 candidates qualified for the November 7 ballot as of July 22 attended Saturday's event.

Kalamazoo City Commission candidate list for the November 7, 2023 election as of Saturday, July 22.

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