Author: David Rodeback (Page 9 of 12)

American Fork – Primary – Mayoral Candidates Audio

07/31/2017 / David Rodeback

Here’s the audio I recorded from the mayoral candidates’ portion of Saturday’s meet-the-candidates event at the American Fork Hospital. Purists might not call it a debate, I suppose, but it’s as close as we tend to get in our politics.

Here are a few disclaimers and some housekeeping.

The audio isn’t professional. You get what you get from my little Sony voice recorder, with a little help from Audacity for dynamic range compression and some noise suppression. The photos aren’t professional either.

I’ve split the audio into sections, by question or statement, and I haven’t deleted any part of any candidate response. Obviously, there’s no fact-checking built into any of this.

If you want my notes, commentary, and analysis, they’re in a separate post, so readers who wish to avoid them can do so easily.

Attendance was about 50, not including candidates. The moderator was State Auditor John Dougall. Questions came from the audience.

Audio from the city council candidates‘ portion of the event is in a separate blog post, and the American Fork Chamber of Commerce, which hosted the event, has posted a video recording of the event on YouTube. Here also is the Daily Herald‘s report of the event. (Apologies for the unpleasant ad experience there.)

Only mayoral candidates Brad Frost and Carlton Bowen were present at the event. The third candidate in the race, Daniel Copper, was absent. No explanation was offered, and no opening or closing statement was read for him in his absence. Continue reading

Meet the Candidates for Mayor and City Council

07/28/2017 / David Rodeback

Tomorrow — Saturday, July 29 — is an event you may not want to miss: a rare opportunity to meet the candidates for American Fork mayor and city council before the August primary election reduces the field.

(The photo is from a similar event in 2015.)

Who, Where, When

As it has before, the American Fork Chamber of Commerce is hosting the event at the American Fork Hospital, at 170 N 1100 E in American Fork. It will be in the new education room in the surgery and emergency building. I suggest allowing a few extra minutes to find it, if you haven’t been there before.

Here’s a link to the Facebook event.

State Auditor John Dougall will moderate the event. He’s an old, skilled hand at this and a familiar face.

What, How

From 9:30 to 10:00 a.m. there will be an informal opportunity to meet and speak with various candidates.

At 10:00 a.m. the mayoral candidates will answer questions in a debate format.

Beginning about 10:30 or 10:45 a.m., the city council candidates will do the same. Continue reading

Your Ballot Will Be in the Mail!

07/25/2017 / David Rodeback

American Fork City is scheduled to put primary election ballots in the mail for all registered voters today, July 25. We may see ballots in our mailboxes tomorrow.

If you think you might want to vote, don’t throw it away! This is how we vote in this election.

If you’re registered and you don’t get your ballot this week, I’d send up a flare early next week (see below). Also note that it’s not to late too register and get a ballot, even if you missed the initial mailing.

How to Use the Ballot

Here’s how it works, according to the official City website:

After you fill out your ballot, place it in the envelope and sign the affidavit on the envelope. Once that’s done, you have options:

- Mail it back to the City. You don’t need a stamp; the City pays return postage. Important: If you mail your ballot, it must be postmarked no later than August 14, the day before Election Day. (For the general election, it’s November 6.)
- Deliver your ballot to the City Recorder’s office (51 E. Main) during business hours, on or before Election Day.
- Deliver your ballot to the Utah County Elections Office (100 E Center, Suite 3100, Provo) during regular business hours, on or before Election Day.
- Deliver your ballot on Election Day, August 15, between 7:00 a.m. and 8:00 p.m., to the Vote Service Center that will be set up at the American Fork Library (64 S 100 E). (November 7 for the general election.) If you have to vote at the service center on Election Day (instead of bringing in your ballot), it will be a provisional vote — meaning that your eligibility will be evaluated after you vote, but before your vote is counted.

An 1840s ballot box in Nauvoo, Illinois. This is not that.

Other Dates and Deadlines

The voter registration deadline for online or in-person registrations for the primary election is August 8. For the general election, it’s October 23.

Primary election results won’t be final until August 29 at the official canvass, but that’s not unusual. We’ll hear tentative results on August 15.

American Fork voters who are registered Republicans (this no longer includes me) will receive a ballot which looks approximately like this and includes the Republican congressional primary candidates. For the rest of us, here’s a sample ballot with City races only.

For my part, I’m not a big fan of the mail-in ballot. Not yet, anyway. I like the civic ritual of going to the polls. But it’s a cheaper way to run an election, so that’s good.

For more information (and eventually some analysis and endorsements) of American Fork candidates, read more here at afelection.info.

City Council Candidates Q&A – Part 2

07/25/2017 / David Rodeback

City council candidates Kyle Barratt, Staci Carroll, Barbara Christiansen, and Jeffrey Shorter will be on the November general election ballot in American Fork. Each voter may choose two, and the two who receive the most votes will win the available seats.

Here candidates answer questions about taxes, water rates, impact fees, and roads. (Last time, they answered questions about experience and qualifications, goals, and motivations for running.)

The following candidates were defeated in the primary. Their responses, if any, are still available here, but have moved behind the buttons below.

Aaron Clegg
Bill Houlin
Ernie John
Doug Richards

Note: The questions in the post were sent to all three candidates by e-mail on Tuesday, July 18. Candidate responses are ordered alphabetically by surname. Responses may be slightly edited for grammar, punctuation, and format. Continue reading

City Council Candidates Q&A – Part 1

07/25/2017 / David Rodeback

Here candidates answer questions about their education, experience, objectives, and motives for running.

The following candidates were defeated in the primary. Their responses, if any, are still available here, but have moved behind the buttons below.

Aaron Clegg
Bill Houlin
Ernie John
Doug Richards

Mayoral Candidates Q&A – Part 2

07/25/2017 / David Rodeback

Mayoral candidates Brad Frost and Carlton Bowen are on the November general election ballot in American Fork. Here they answer questions about taxes, fees, water rates, and roads. (Previously, they answered questions about experience and qualifications, goals, and why they’re running.)

Note: This page will be updated as further responses are received. The questions in the post were sent to all three candidates by e-mail on Tuesday, July 18. Candidate responses are ordered alphabetically by surname. Responses may be slightly edited for grammar, punctuation, and format. Responses by candidate Daniel Copper, who was defeated in the primary, are still available below, behind the buttons. Continue reading

Mayoral Candidates Q&A – Part 1

07/25/2017 / David Rodeback

Mayoral candidates Brad Frost and Carlton Bowen are on the November general election ballot in American Fork. Here they answer questions about their education, experience, objectives, and motives for running.

Meet the Candidates in American Fork

07/19/2017 / David Rodeback

I’m hearing that we have two public opportunities to meet the candidates for American Fork Mayor and City Council before the August 15 primary. I’ll have more information soon, perhaps, but for now . . .

July 29 Debate

A debate is scheduled for Saturday, July 29, at the American Fork Hospital meeting room. This is sponsored by the American Fork Chamber of Commerce.

Meet and Greet: 9:30-10:00 a.m.
Mayoral Debate: 10:00-11:00 a.m.
Council Debate: 11:00 a.m. – 12:00 noon

The public is invited.

August 7 Concert in the Park

Candidates will be at the August 7 Concert in the Park, at the Amphitheater on Monday, August 7, 6:00 to 9:00 p.m. The concert itself is free, and the public is invited.

If you see me at either event, come say hello.

On Your Own

There’s no substitute for speaking with candidates in person, but as the election approaches, you’ll find information, links, and commentary here at afelection.info, as well as notes and probably audio from the debate. You can make your own contacts too, of course. Here is contact information for mayoral candidates and city council candidates.

Be sure to thank them all for running. It’s not a small thing.

American Fork City Council Candidates Contact Information

07/18/2017 / David Rodeback

[Updated 7 August 2017]

Here is all the contact information I’ve found for this year’s candidates for American Fork Mayor. I started with official data from afcity.org; the rest I’ve accumulated from various online sources.

If you live or work in American Fork, you should join the All About American Fork group on Facebook. Most of what happens there isn’t politics, but candidates and related events also pop up there from time to time. See also the City’s Voter Information Pamphlet.

If you’re a candidate — or even a voter — who has additional information for any of these, please send it to me, and I’ll verify it and post it. Note that I have not included links in some cases where I think I found the right person, but the profile lacks a photo or is empty. For now, at least, I have included personal Facebook, Twitter, and other social media links, whether there is recent political content there or not. Continue reading

American Fork Mayor Candidates Contact Info

07/18/2017 / David Rodeback

[Updated 7 August 2017]

Here is all the contact information I’ve found for the 2017 candidates for American Fork Mayor. Some of the basics are at afcity.org; the rest I’ve accumulated from various online sources.

If you’re a candidate — or even a voter — who has additional information for any of these, please send it to me, and I’ll verify it and post it. Note that I have not included links in some cases where I think I found the right person, but the profile lacks a photo or is empty. And I have included personal Facebook, Twitter, and other social media links, whether there is recent political content there or not. Continue reading