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Friday, July 25, 2014

Salisbury Seeking Five-District Voting System

SALISBURY — A plan to split Salisbury into five voting districts advanced out of work session this week despite opposition from a minority of the City Council.

Opponents argued that the city is attempting to fix what isn’t broken, while supporters feel that Salisbury’s current two-district system isn’t a fair representation of all of the area’s diverse neighborhoods.

Debate has been lively about re-districting in Salisbury for better than a year and continued hot this week. One of the major points of contention for some on the council is how the five-district system proposed by the administration would slice the city into smaller pieces. This would give individual votes more power, which Councilman Tim Spies noted carries both benefits and risks.

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6 comments:

Anonymous said...

Mitchell certainly did a good job of twisting what Spies said. Here she is looking to leave the city council for "bigger and better things" on the county council, but she wants to dictate city elections.

Spies is a veteran who likely has more knowledge about democracy in his little pinky than the Ireton-Mitchell-Shields clan does combined. He's right. It's not the renters who are a problem. It's the ones who have them by the financial shorthairs.

Anonymous said...

Tim Spies is a good guy, but what does being a veteran have to do with knowledge about democracy? They teach constitutional law classes in the Navy now?

Anonymous said...

Snarky 9:49 is obviously not a vet.

Anonymous said...

So, they'll have 1. Ghetto 2. Ghetto 3. Old houses with old people 4. College houses 5. Subsidized housing, aka Ghetto? Good call.

Anonymous said...


All members elected at large was a fine system but was torpedoed by Dept of Injustice.

Current set-up has 4 at-large members and one from a carefully drawn district specifically to elect someone of a certain race.

A move to create districts will almost certainly result in gerrymandered districts due to the philosophies of those currently in the majority, and the mayor's chair. That will not be progress!

Looking back over 30 years the city has suffered a severe drain of engaged, public minded folks willing to run and serve. Only 2 such folks still sit on the council.

Geographic districts are even more likely to accelerate the trend to talentless representation, which is fine in the eyes of the J&J crew.

Beware!

Anonymous said...

Opponents argued that the city is attempting to fix what isn’t broken, while supporters feel that Salisbury’s current two-district system isn’t a fair representation of all of the area’s diverse neighborhoods.

WTF!!

What isn't a fair representation to the neighborhoods. The current system isn't fair because some people who live on Riverside Drive have Shanie Shields as their representative. That alone is enough for me to not want to buy a waterfront home on Riverside drive.

Having 2 districts is not fair representation. If you want fair representation then you have an all at large city council then you will have a fair representation.

It this passes then you will have 5 councilman from the different ghetto pockets on the newly formed 5 districts. Think about that you will get 5(FIVE) Shanie Shields on your city council. Not one but FIVE Ghetto Candidates.

Everyone knows why some of the city council members want these 5 districts and it all lies in the hands of Jim Ireton. Jim Ireton plans on being here as long as he can be unless the governor appoints him to fill Norman Conway's seat and that can happen.

Jim Ireton has a vendetta because he is a afraid to get Debbie Campbell back on the City Council even though he road in on her coat tail. Jim Ireton used to have Debbie Campbell, Terry Cohen and Tim Spies as his biggest supporter until this power trip went to his head. Seems like everyone has forgotten how Jim Ireton lied to everyone to get elected. Everyone has forgotten that Jim Ireton has turned on all of his biggest supporters and friends. His new friends were his enemies. Doesn't anyone find that kind of strange. I believe that is a mental disorder.

Jim Ireton and Jim Ireton alone has devised this 5 district plan to eliminate Debbie Campbell, Terry Cohen and Tim Spies because they are all in the Camden area and he feels threatened by them especially after he screwed them over and had Chuck Cook with the help of the Obama and O'Malley Administrations rig the city elections like they are going to do the County elections.