Stop Appointing Council Members. It’s Time We Start Voting!

Dear Editor,

The 4th Ward councilperson, Bethany Gates, has resigned, effective May 1st. Tonight the Council is going to announce that they intend to fill that vacancy by appointment. I do not agree with that decision. I am announcing that I will be beginning a petition requesting a special election to fill the vacancy, so if you live in the 4th Ward, I may be stopping at your house. If I don’t ,feel free to reach oul and let me know you want to sign.

Here are my reasons:

1. The announcement to fill by appointment says that Mayor already has a person picked to fill the vacancy. Any actions asking for applicants would only be a ruse to appear as though the Mayor is interested in getting more participation.

2. Let’s talk about the last vacancy filled by appointment. Last year, the council filled the 3rd ward vacancy created by the resignation of Valerie Bearbower. The Council requested applicants and interviewed 4 people. Zach Parmeter was appointed with no open discussion.

Now for the stuff we aren’t supposed to know. The 3rdWard seat has been filled by appointment 3 times in the last 10 years. There were only 2 people involved in those appointments: Bud Maynard and Zach Parmater.

• Appointment #1 - Bud Maynard resigned his seat July 24, 2014, to presumably run against Mayor Watson. Zach Parmater was appointed to fill the vacancy on August 8th. Bud Maynard lost the election to Watson. Zach runs unopposed and wins the 3rd ward seat November 3, 2015 (more on this later)

• Appointment #2 – Zach Parmater moves out of the 3rdward and is forced to resign on May 11, 2017. At the very same meeting, Bud Maynard said he will fill the vacancy. Bud Maynard filled the vacancy on June 8, 2017, without the Council following Iowa law about posting intent to appoint. On December 22, 2021, the City redraws the 3rd Ward boundary essentially adding one house to the 3rd Ward, of course it was Zach Parmater’ s house. Now Zach is back in the 3rd Ward.

• Appointment #3 – Valerie Bearbower resigns from her 3rd Ward seat. The City asked for applicants and received 4. All were interviewed but Zach Parmater was again appointed to fill the 3rd Ward seat now that the boundaries had been redrawn. There was no open discussion about the interviews. Zach runs unopposed and wins the 3rd ward seat November 7, 2023 (more on this later)

3. Zach Parmater is an imposter!! - Zach Parmater has not been registered to vote nor has he voted in any election for at least the last 10 years. More importantly, Zach couldn’t even find the time or energy to register or vote in either of the two municipal elections in which he was on the ballot. ZACH PARMETER WON’T EVEN VOTE FOR HIMSELF ON ELECTION NIGHT, WHY SHOULD ANYONE ELSE!!!!!! Zach Parmater needs to resign immediately. Maybe we could get two special elections with one petition.

4. Based on how the Mayor found it more important to have someone who will always match his vote rather than ensuring that the application actually participates in the process and exercise his duty to vote, I will never trust the Council again to fill a vacancy by appointment. I will always present a petition for a special election. At least then I will know that the winner actually would be forced to go through the proper processes and vote.

Darran Sellers

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DS April 12, 2024, 2:45 pm LV, Voting records are public information and available to anyone making a request after paying a fee of $5 per request. These voting records are how all of those candidates and other organizations get your address and start sending junk mail. Information in the voting records includes the following information for all registered voters. 1. Full name and address. 2. City and Precinct 3. County 4. Registration Status Active or Inactive. Inactive status means the person used to be registered but became inactive after failing to re-registering after a move or other reason for the change from active. Currently, Zach Parmater is inactive, which means he did not re-register after moving. 5. You can also get the names of all the people who voted in the last 5 elections. If your name is not on those lists, you did not vote. Zach's name has not been on any list for about 10 years.

AM April 12, 2024, 1:23 pm I am with you 100% and will gladly sign your petition for a special election. However, I do not feel the attacks on Zach Parmater's character were necessary. I graduated with Zach and I consider him a friend. Your focus should be on addressing the issue of appointing council members, and not personal attacks. That kind of behavior only alienates people and perhaps pushes people who would agree with you away. In order to make real change happen, we have to work together! That being said, I want to thank you for the work that you do, Mr. Sellers! I hope you continue on in a manner that rises above the mudslinging and name calling that we have seen so much of in politics in the past. It is time for a new era, where we focus on the future and real solutions, instead of finger pointing and placing the blame over the past! We are all to blame for standing by and letting it go on so long. I am grateful to live in a time where people are waking up to the corruption at local, state, and national levels- because it is long past time for us to get together and do something about it! -Ashley Meredith

LV April 12, 2024, 12:05 pm Back to the matter at hand......what is the location of Ward 4? How much would a special election cost? Are there any people who want to run in Ward 4? Why and how do you know Zach's voting or non-voting? Isn't that private? Seems to me that it should be. Lisa Vogt

DE April 12, 2024, 4:33 am I'm confused. If there were 4 applicants for Bearbower's seat, why did he run unopposed? I would think at least one of the other 3 could manage to print up a poster or two

Opinion : Stop Appointing Council Members. It’s Time We Start Voting!

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