14% is the number that sums up the end of the story of my challenging a long-time, dearly appreciated public servant, County Commissioner Iris Kiesling!
It’s a bit closer than a margin of 18% seen in a past contested Primary—that resulted when Stoops challenged Pierce for State Representative in 2004’s Primary Election—and some people observed back then that even that percentage was a surprise indicating a decent run. Still, 14% is clearly a solid win for my opponent and colleague Iris Kiesling.
No doubt about it, Primary Elections keep democracy robust– and they galvanize voters and candidates to sharpen their focus on platforms, stump speeches, issues, etc. I’m glad to have been a part of the process for a sophomore campaign experience– which doubled as a freshman effort for, or crack at, a different office!
The evening at the Democratic Headquarters was lively. While it was sweltering hot indoors, milling around in the parking lot with various clusters of fun people in the cool night air was pleasant and the time passed quickly. By 10 o’ clock or so I felt that the results were definitive and very much wanted to make a concession speech. In my daily state of getting more unwieldy I was wanting to put my feet up—but not before having a chance to express my feelings and a message to my “family” of fellow Democrats.
Leaving without doing so would have gone against my sensibilities and Party Chairperson Lee Jones graciously got everyone’s attention and I had a chance to thank Iris. It meant a lot to me to have some time to stress a message of Sen. Simpson’s (one that I heard last Friday morning–and briefly blogged about here on pin-the-tail) about Democrats needing to stay united for the General Election, to get behind all our candidates who move forward, and create change from the top to the bottom of the ballot. I hope people felt reassured that I support Kiesling for Commissioner—something I have been prepared for all along because I’ve been optimistically realistic about the odds of pulling through the Primary.
In closing I had a chance to emphasize that the platform I articulated is one I am proud to have conveyed to the voters: transparency, communication, and the significance of land use issues and our need to raise awareness about them—all remain important. Finally, I expressed that it’s an honor to serve alongside Commissioner Kiesling and all the Council colleagues I’ve served with—and continue to serve alongside.
The Council has done a lot of “heavy lifting” of which I’m very proud of on behalf of Democrats.
When you wear the party label, ultimately it’s the “party that brings you to the dance,” and I’m really, really excited about embracing a new chapter to my role as a party member. Part of this will be finishing out my year as an elected official for eight more months. I’m thinking that I can strive even more assertively for things that sometimes have been on the back burner for the sake of approaching their realization with more gentle persuasion…maybe it’s time to ratchet up some of the action on those projects, ideas, etc.
After this year is through I am excited about the transition to being a party member who can participate as a supporter in the ways that others have lifted me up for a good long while; I can turn around and extend a hand with more time, and in a new way!
In conjunction with that thought, I plan to get back to the original guiding spirit of pin-the-tail— which, in the beginning, was sometimes a little more effervescently infused with teasers to grab readers’ attention. With the General Election season in the Fall, I think that won’t be hard to have a lot of fun with.
I’ve got some more wrap-up about the candidates who came through the Primary but I can save that for “soon enough” and I’d just like to point out that I’m totally thrilled that Mark Stoops has likely come through as the candidate for the other open Commissioner’s seat on the Board of County Commissioners! Now that is the BEGINNING of a great story!
Today there will be a County Council Work Session at 4:30 (bumped from our regular first Tuesday of the month to today) and the work to do is fairly demanding today. Back in the saddle…
oh, now, where did I put my tail?
Here’s a funny photo from the H-T—my friend Victoria sent it to me via email—I’ll claim that it is “fair use” to publish it here—because it proves to you all that my self-proclaimed nickname of “Pumpkinhead” is indeed true. I can’t remember what Iris and I were saying at the moment but it is, like I said, a funny picture!

photo from Herald-Times