Columbia election notes: Johnson pitches ethics reform package in mayor’s race
Columbia mayoral candidate Sam Johnson said, if elected, he would push to establish an ethics commission at the city of Columbia.
The proposal was part of an ethics reform package Johnson’s campaign announced on Wednesday afternoon. It came along with an endorsement of his mayoral run from attorney Jay Bender, who has long represented media entities, including The State Media Co., and others in open government matters.
Four candidates are campaigning for mayor in the Nov. 2 election: Johnson, former District 3 City Councilman Moe Baddourah, at-large City Councilwoman Tameika Isaac Devine, and District 4 City Councilman Daniel Rickenmann.
Johnson’s ethics proposal calls for, among other things, the creation of a city ethics commission to investigate all ethics complaints and publicly review all proposed city contracts for potential conflicts of interest, the establishment of an independent Freedom of Information Act review panel, and making it mandatory for city council members and city employees (department heads and up) to report any outside employment, including the source, activity and amount paid, to the city ethics commission for review and public disclosure.
“From Washington to City Hall, people are fed up with the culture of carelessness infecting our politics. It must end here,” Johnson said in a release.
Rickenmann is the first mayoral candidate to hit the airwaves with TV campaign ads. One of the 15-second ads focuses on public safety, while the other talks of getting “back to the basics” of city government.
“I’ve been fortunate to speak with thousands of voters so far in this race, and we’re going to talk to thousands more,” Rickenmann said in a release. “But voters tell me they care about making Columbia safe, lowering taxes and getting these steel plates off our roads and that’s why I’m making those issues my priority.”
Devine rolled out plans to combat gun violence during a community meeting this week. Among other things, she said she’d push to expand ShotSpotter gunshot detection technology in Columbia and work for more community intervention to help stem the tide of gun violence in the capital city. Violent crime is up by 8% in Columbia this year, according to the city police department.
Devine said she would advocate for a “violence interrupter” program, in which street outreach volunteers would monitor and intervene in conflicts before they escalate to try to reach nonviolent solutions. “We need people in the streets who can help us build these relationships so that hopefully we can deter people,” Devine said. “We need to make sure we have conflict resolution. You may have a person shot, and the next week there may be retaliation. That’s not going to be solved by just law enforcement. That’s going to be solved by working with the community.”
Members of Columbia City Council and Richland County Council have offered a flurry of endorsements in the at-large race for city council.
District 2 City Councilman Ed McDowell endorsed environmental lobbyist Deitra Stover Matthews for the citywide seat on Thursday morning.
“I’ve known Deitra and her family for many years now, and I’ve always been encouraged by how her experiences as an educator, military spouse and environmentalist have informed her perspective and contributed to her nature as a public servant,” said McDowell, who is in his second term as a councilman. “Deitra is an experienced policymaker and activist who knows how to communicate effectively with those directly impacted by government decision making.”
Meanwhile, at-large City Councilman Howard Duvall and Richland County Councilwoman Allison Terracio endorsed IT professional Heather Bauer for the at-large seat in a video on Twitter.
“I’m ready to have another city council member that’s ready on day one to work with us at all levels of government,” Terracio said.
Seven candidates are in the at-large race. They include attorney Tyler Bailey, Bauer, public health researcher Dr. Aditi Bussells, attorney John Crangle, Matthews, photographer Aaron Smalls and activist John Tyler. To see questionnaires with all of those candidates, click here.
Aside from the mayoral and at-large race, a race in City Council District 1 in north Columbia pits attorney Tina Herbert against state Department of Corrections officer Christa Williams. And in District 4 in northeast Columbia, businessman Joe Taylor is the only person on the ballot.
