The bigger impact of local elections
OPINION — Local elections matter. Slightly more than half of Fountain Hills' eligible voters participated in our recent mayoral and town council election, leaving a small minority to decide the future of our community. A majority of those who did vote elected ROT-backed
Candidates, some aligned with election denial and skepticism about the scientific consensus and urgent, devastating consequences of climate change.
I’d wager that a majority of our community’s good citizens weren’t even aware that one of the council's most negatively impactful decisions this year was to reject the proposed solar carport project at the Community Center — turning down an opportunity to provide precious, blessed shade and generate cost-effective, clean energy. If more citizens did know, would they have voted for more of the same?
Bear in mind that this short-sighted decision came during a year of record-breaking, extreme heat, including an unusually hot and miserable spring that at times sucked the pleasure out of outdoor activities, vacations, festivals and sporting events.
It’s also a stark reminder that climate change has real consequences for not just our quality of life and local economy, but also for its devastating impact on air quality, water resources, crops and wildlife.
Local elections matter because they shape local policies, and those policies reflect broader values and priorities. The question is: how do we get more people to connect the dots between local and national elections, understand the urgency of what's at stake and care enough to vote?
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