Win Gruening: Elections, like sports, are healthier with robust competition

By WIN GRUENING

The City and Borough of Juneau Election Toolkit provides insightful encouragement to prospective candidates for its local elections: “Whatever the office, our public institutions are stronger when voters have a choice of candidates to represent them. Democracy works only when enough citizens have the courage and determination to run for, and hold, public office.”

While national politics and party conventions continue to dominate the news, this is the time of year when voters should shift their focus to local municipal elections. Municipal races across the state will determine the make-up of local governing bodies that could have far more impact on our lives than who will be our country’s next president.

Whatever the sporting event, we have all been to games where the competition was substandard. The teams were unevenly matched, and it was a blowout. Attendance is usually down, and most attendees walk away thinking it was a waste of time. The favorite was not tested and, as a result, no one really knows whether they are really as good as they claim.

Despite that, the beauty of sports is that it is a merit-based system, and the best team should win. Of course, there are exceptions. Anyone can have a bad day. But the point is to prove to the audience that you deserve to win based on your performance.

While not directly comparable, local elections should work the same way. After all, they call elections “races” for a reason.

Often local elections generate little excitement. Frequently it is because too few people are willing to take the plunge and run for office. In many cases, incumbent candidates run unopposed because no one is willing to challenge them. Or the one or two candidates that do file have the same viewpoint so do not represent a true choice.

Furthermore, mail-in voting can depress voter turnout because it trivializes the importance and gravity of the act of voting. Where elections are competitive, however, voters pay attention and turnout increases. 

Lack of competition and lower turnout and have been the case in far too many local contests.

However, for the second year in a row, Juneau’s electorate has decided to challenge the status quo in their upcoming municipal election on Oct. 1.

Of the three Juneau Assembly seats up in 2024, two are open seats since the incumbents opted out. In all, seven people are running in those two contests, two in District 1 and five in District 2. In the third race, Juneau Mayor Beth Weldon will face competition from Angela Rodell, the former CEO of the Alaska Permanent Fund.

All three Juneau school board incumbents are running against challengers.

The candidates should be congratulated for their willingness to run. Why not encourage the candidates by separating your voting choices from your support for the electoral process. Regardless of who you prefer, Juneau voters could consider sending a small contribution to competing candidates as a way to express your support for the democratic process.

Certainly, there are plenty of issues for candidates to debate. Topping the list of significant issues are increases in property taxes, Juneau’s high cost-of-living, and homelessness. Also on the list are major expenditure for controversial projects like the Capital Civic Center and New City Hall, a possible new City Museum, hospital financial stability, and the facility consolidations in the Juneau School District, to name just a few.

Without competition, incumbents and candidates without challengers would not be required to defend their record or their stated positions. 

Electoral competition is a cornerstone of democracy because it grants voters the opportunity to review the record of incumbents, change direction when warranted, and implement the will of the people.

None of our elected leaders own the seats in which they sit. They belong to the public and it is up to candidates to convince voters they deserve to remain in office.

Despite some national political leaders claiming our democracy is on the ballot this year, it is not.

Democracy is the ballot. And it starts locally.

After retiring as the senior vice president in charge of business banking for Key Bank in Alaska, Win Gruening became a regular opinion page columnist for the Juneau Empire. He was born and raised in Juneau and graduated from the U.S. Air Force Academy in 1970. He is involved in various local and statewide organizations.