Voter vigilance, education critical to good elections

Midsummer in Alaska may not seem the best time to be thinking about local government and whom we choose to represent us. But another candidate filing period closed Friday afternoon for city and borough elections in October.

A full rundown of city council and races in Houston, Palmer and Wasilla begins on page A1 of this edition, along with summaries of races for two seats on the borough assembly and three seats on the school board. Palmer residents will also be choosing a mayor.

Although there are a handful of candidates who are uncontested, for the most part there is a nice variety of folks vying to represent us at various levels of local government. This kind of choice is always good news for voters. It is also great for democracy.

But it comes with a cost. That cost is not measured in dollars and cents, but rather in effort from the electorate.

There are serious issues currently in play around the borough, so it behooves all who believe in democracy to pay close attention between now and Election Day on Oct. 1.

Will the election bring more ideological balance to the borough assembly? Has Houston moved beyond its troubled recent past toward a more stable and effective system of governance? Will former state legislator Vic Kohring, elected seven times to represent Wasilla in Juneau, keep his unblemished election record intact as he seeks re-entry into public life after a high-profile exit in 2007?

Stay tuned to find out. Better yet, tune in.

Alaska is a special place for a lot of reasons. One is the accessibility of those who take the challenge to campaign for public office.

So we hope borough residents will take the time to seek out those hoping to represent us. Shake their hands. Look them in the eye. Find out more about them than what can be gleaned from a written candidate statement.

There will be no shortage of opportunity. This paper will follow all the local races closely.

There will also be a multitude of candidate forums and debates, so no one should be faced with walking into the voting booth in October not knowing anything about the candidates on the ballot.

There has been much hand-wringing after recent elections over dwindling voter turnout — and with good reason. Democracy was never intended to be a spectator sport. To flourish, it requires maximum participation.

Sadly, voter turnout for local elections is traditionally the lowest. And that’s too bad, considering how local government affects everyone, every day.

But a trend reversal is as close as the next election. We hope voters will make the most of the opportunity facing them.