With the April 5 Champaign mayoral election just over a month away, Jerry Schweighart’s re-election campaign has taken a distinct turn toward the low road.
As reported by WCIA on Friday, Schweighart has withdrawn from a debate — organized by the Illinois Student Senate — with independent candidate Don Gerard, which had been scheduled for Monday, March 7.
David Pileski, the Chairman of the Illinois Student Senate Committee of Governmental Affairs, received a message this past Tuesday from the mayor’s assistant, indicating that the mayor was no longer able to participate in the debate due to meetings and other engagements — despite the fact that the debate was scheduled specifically to accommodate the mayor’s calendar.
Schweighart’s schedule must really be becoming compressed in the lead-up to the election, because just last August, he had the time to show up at a constituent’s house unannounced to explain why city parking laws don’t apply to him.
Schweighart was quoted in the WCIA report as saying he’d only participate in a debate “if it’s run by a legitimate organization.” That description apparently excludes the ISS in Schweighart’s estimation, as well as the Junior League of Champaign-Urbana. The JLCU had also invited Schweighart to participate in a debate sponsored by their organization, but were rebuffed. “The Junior League of Champaign-Urbana is disappointed that we will not be able to host a mayoral debate,” said JLCU president Jen Parastaran. “JLCU will continue to follow the campaigns of both candidates. We look forward [to] a discussion of the issues affecting our community. We hope a debate is scheduled even if it is not with JLCU.”
Of course, but for a sudden new interest in mayoral Twittering, you’d barely know there was an election if it wasn’t for the growing number of Don Gerard lawn signs. In nearly any election, it’s in the incumbent’s best interest to limit his/her exposure to additional public scrutiny (as well as to limit the opportunities for the electorate to make direct comparisons between himself and his challenger). Schweighart would have little to gain from participating in such debates, and perhaps his handlers are just now coming to this realization (on the other hand, the rest of the country realized that Schweighart is an embarrassment last summer — you’d be hard-pressed to name another sitting mayor in the United States with a larger Google problem than “Jerry Schweighart“).
However, the mayor’s decision to commit to an event and then withdraw on short notice for dubious reasons — while at the same time insulting the non-partisan, long-standing organizations which had labored to organize the events — demonstrates disappointing political incompetence and — whether he realizes it or not — gives the impression of cynicism toward his constituency.
While it may be in the Schweighart’s best interest to ignore the debates (and the election on the whole), we believe that it is in the best interest of the citizens of Champaign to have a fully informed choice in electing the next mayor. Having been the highest ranking public official in Champaign for twelve years, Schweighart should have plenty of experience to draw upon, and it’s alarming that he’s so unwilling to publicly defend his record. So we encourage the Mayor to somehow find time in his schedule for a debate before April 5. A great city like Champaign deserves a mayor who is transparent, and now is not the time to hide behind scheduling conflicts.
UPDATE (8:24 a.m. 2/28/11): The Illinois Student Senate has issued a press release regarding the chain of events leading to the debate’s cancellation. You can download the pdf here. The ISS also released the email communications between themselves and the mayor’s office. That pdf is available here.
UPDATE (10:00 a.m. 3/1/11): Schweighart now cites “family problems” as his reason for cancelling, and denies receiving debate invites from anyone other than the ISS.
UPDATE (8:00 p.m. 3/1/11): From Carole Rebeiz, Chair, League of Women Voters of Champaign County (LWVCC) Voter Service Committee:
We have been asked to sponsor a candidate forum at Parkland and have arranged to co-host it with the Champaign County NAACP. This forum is for the 7 candidates for the 3 positions on the Parkland College Board and will be held on Thursday, March 24 from 7-9 pm at the Tony Noel Center.
We will also co-sponsor a forum with the NAACP for the Champaign Mayoral candidates and the 3 Write-In candidates for Champaign City Council District 5. Once we have our plans finalized, I will let you know the place, date and time.
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Tune in to Smile Politely Radio this Friday, March 4, at 5:30 p.m. on WEFT – 90.1 FM (and streaming online at weft.org), as we interview Gerard about a wide range of issues. The podcast of the interview will be posted on Tuesday, March 8. Mayor Schweighart has been invited for an interview on a later show.
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The Smile Politely Editorial Board is made up of editors appointed by their peers. Its opinions are meant to represent a general consensus among the editors on an important issue. This editorial should not be construed as representing the opinions of individual editors or writers, many of whom may disagree with some or all of its content.