In national elections, the whole thing can turn on just a few votes difference. We’ve seen it happen. In a few days, we’re going to have an election where only the candidates for our own town are running and the turnout is likely to be even smaller. And in the gem-like little town of Springdale, where the number of registered voters is just a few hundred in the first place … Well … What else do you need to know?

The only thing that will be big is the chance of your vote being critical!

I can’t overemphasize the importance of the Town Council in Springdale. I attend a lot of their meetings these days and I can testify … the Town Council is where ultimate authority lies for anything that Springdale can actually control. (There is a lot that Springdale can’t control. We’re surrounded by Zion National Park, for example.)

Because this election will have real significance to our lives here in Springdale, I’m devoting a whole series of blogs to the the candidates. I’ve spoken to all of them personally and they have all agreed to respond to email questions. So watch this space! There’s more to come.

If you don’t want to page through the other blogs here, you can find only the articles about the candidates using the search feature and the search key, “Springdale Town Council Elections”. (See the illustration!)

This first blog will simply introduce the candidates. The Springdale Lion’s Club sponsored a “Meet the Candidates” night at the Canyon Community Center yesterday and all who attended got a very good introduction.

The next blog will give the candidates themselves a chance to answer the question, “Why are you running for the Springdale Town Council?”

If you have a question you would like the candidates to answer, leave a comment at this blog!

I want to express my appreciation for the willingness of the candidates to shoulder this responsibilty. I know from personal experience that they do a lot of work … And they are always in the crosshairs of public second-guessing because the buck does indeed stop with them.

The candidates:

Louise Excell is one of the two incumbents running, so if you have been to a Town Council meeting, you have probably seen her in action. Louise is a long time Springdale resident with deep roots in the community. Her “day job” is in the administration at Dixie College.

Jack Fotheringham said that people he has spoken to in Springdale want a change in direction for the Town and he feels that there is an unrepresented constituency out there that he plans to stand up for. Jack is a pilot for regional airlines.

Cheryl Ann Frassa would represent an important part of Springdale: People who have decided to live here because they fell in love with the place. (I’m a member of that group, for instance.) Cheryl used to live and work in Las Vegas for the Bureau of Land Management but she’s an independent consultant now.

Jon Michael Marriott showed his “business administration” background because he came to the “Meet the Candidates” session with a checklist of specific things that he thought needed fixing in Springdale and has pledged to fix them. He runs the Switchback and the associated businesses around it.

Stan Smith said that it’s really important that you know how to spell his name because if you vote for him, you’ll have to write it in. (I think I could handle that!) Stan is the other incumbent and has also lived here for many years. He was originally registered for the office but he made the decision to drop out when it looked like business might take him out of the race after the primary and he didn’t want make Springdale pay the cost of a primary election if it would later prove to be unnecessary. So he’s a write-in candidate now because he was thinking of us! Stan runs the Bumbleberry in the middle of town.

Again … leave a comment here if there is something you want to ask the candidates!