Final Word: Phoenix City Council candidates really want the job

It’s Election Day in the City of Phoenix.

The good news is that your next mail delivery won’t have 20 mailers asking you to vote for or against one candidate or another.

The bad news is that the election is for city council, and so far, for four city council seats, 16 candidates have spent $1.5 million, reported The Arizona Republic.

That doesn’t include independent expenditures, money raised by outside groups such as the city employees unions in District 6, which have thrown almost a half- million dollars at the race in my district.

This is a contest between a candidate who wants to reform the city employee pension system and one who doesn’t, so I guess I should be glad that the race is getting so much attention. These are real issues that will mean a lot to the city’s financial bottom line from this day forward.
But on the other hand, this is just the primary!

A city council member, by the way, makes $34,000.
Not that I think a city council member should be in it for the money, but it’s a stark divide, isn’t it?

Does a race like this discourage neighborhood activists from running for office because they don’t believe they can possibly raise enough money?

I hope not.

You might think city council as a topic is boring, and as an office is small potatoes. But the fact remains that Phoenix is run primarily by these eight elected officials. It’s the ultimate example of local control in government.

Too bad it’s so expensive.

I can’t wait to see how many people actually cast a vote.