Two Democrats vie for new district seat on Washtenaw County Board of Commissioners
This story was updated at 11:10 a.m.
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In the only contested primary election for seats on the Washtenaw County Board of Commissioners, voters will choose between two Ann Arbor Democrats for the newly formed 7th District spot.
This is the first election in which voters will elect commissioners based on new district boundaries after they were re-drawn.
The new 7th District, which comprises the eastern half of Ann Arbor, is composed of former 8th, 9th and 11th districts and is currently represented by Democratic Commissioners Barbara Levin Bergman, Leah Gunn and Yousef Rabhi, respectively.
Vying for voter approval for the 7th District spot Aug. 7 on the primary ballot are Andy LaBarre, 30, and Christina Montague, 60, both of Ann Arbor. The winner of the primary election will face Republican David Parker of Ann Arbor on the Nov. 6 ballot for the two-year seat on the Board of Commissioners.
Montague and LaBarre recently went head to head during a televised debate.
Commissioners are paid a base salary of $15,500 and per diems of $25 per meeting. Per diems are allocated on strict guidelines, per a 2010 revision of the rules.
Andy LaBarre
He has gained a number of endorsements from notable parties, including Dingell, state Sen. Rebekah Warren, State Rep. Jeff Irwin and Washtenaw County Sheriff Jerry Clayton, as well as all Ann Arbor members of the county board and all Democrats on the Ann Arbor City Council. LaBarre said he has been recently knocking on doors with Clayton.
LaBarre said if elected, he will advocate for the protection of human services and the preservation of parkland.
There are a number of farmers on the verge of retiring in Washtenaw County with family properties that LaBarre said he does not want to see lost to the development of “McMansions.”
Christina Montague
“For a guy my age and with my experience, I’m a pretty good coalition builder,” LaBarre said.
Montague served on the Board of Commissioners from 1990 to 2002, and works as a social worker in Ann Arbor Public Schools. Montague said she formerly represented a district composed of the old 8th District.
Montague said she was out campaigning in the neighborhood by Bryant Elementary School at 2150 Santa Rosa Drive on the south side of Ann Arbor recently and witnessed a lot of people living closely together in lower and middle income housing.
"What's so new of this new district, there is an average of 2,577 units of multi-family housing in this area," Montague said. "It is extremely dense."
Montague said she wants to seek a partnership between the city and county to help bring social services to the people in the neighborhood to help bring down infant mortality rates.
"I've seen politics at the international level," Montague said. "I'm a fiscal conservative, I'm socially liberally. I want to use my experience as a commissioner and a social worker to do a good job. ... I know what works in Washtenaw County."
As both candidates emphasize the importance of social services to the county, the primary race has evolved into a battle of endorsements.
Montague recently hosted a campaign rally in Ypsilanti where the Rev. Jesse Jackson urged the crowd to “vote Montague” during a racially-charged speech about gun control issues and voting rights.
The star power Montague brought into her campaign with the Jackson rally hasn’t fazed her opponent.
“It hasn’t drastically changed the contest here,” LaBarre said. “It’s such a local office with such local and specific needs. Those things are foremost on people’s minds when it comes to the county commission.”
LaBarre’s long list of endorsements recently expanded with the addition of the United Auto Workers Region 1-A , the Huron Valley Central Labor Council and the 15th Congressional District Democratic Organization.
His endorsements include a number of sitting county commissioners, high-ranking county employees, Ann Arbor City Councilmembers and several township officials. For a full list, click here.
Amy Biolchini covers Washtenaw County, health and environmental issues for AnnArbor.com. Reach her at (734) 623-2552, amybiolchini@annarbor.com or on Twitter.
Comments
Tom Wieder
Fri, Aug 3, 2012 : 7:25 p.m.
@Leah Gunn - You are clearly not supporting Montague in this race, and I am not supporting either candidate, but your mocking criticism of Montague about "new" housing south of I-94 is unfair and uncalled-for. It is pretty clear that Montague is saying that the housing is "new" to the district, not newly built. The majority of the new District 7 is drawn from the existing District 8, and that district didn't include the high-density housing that Montague is talking about. The district Montague was previously elected from was similar to the existing District 8. All she is saying is that she is running to serve a new constituency that wasn't in her old district. She is absolutely correct about that, and I'm sure she knows that the housing has been there for a very long time.
KeepingItReal
Fri, Aug 3, 2012 : 9:23 p.m.
Tom. I am glad that you clarified this point. I'm not a gullible member of the Montague corner, but I am a supporter of integrity. I have found that Leah Gunn and Barb Bergman are less than honest in their public positions. When I see the Sheriff, Conan, the entire City Council and numerous others supporting LaBarre, I am concerned about the potential quality of leadership in the immediate future. This alone to me have caused great misgivings about LaBarre because I feel that he is part of the political machine currently in place and not pushing a progressive agenda. Its time for Gunn and Bergmann to seriously "retire" and let new leadership take over.
Ed Jackson
Fri, Aug 3, 2012 : 2:44 p.m.
Anyone who knows Andy personally knows he's not a resume builder. He's one of those rare types of public servants who actually cares about serving the public. When he staffed for a Congressperson, he spent his time working one on one with constituents ensuring they had access to government services, programs, and representatives. Have one conversation with Andy and you'll get right away why everyone is endorsing him: it's not because of some set of inside connections; it's because he's genuinely committed to serving his community, something we've seen time and again throughout his working life. It's frustrating when "building coalitions," earning endorsements from respected local leaders, and serving the community are twisted into negative things, when in reality they represent everything we should want out of a county commissioner. Meanwhile, Montague, the one who worked on the commission before and was unable to get endorsements from any of the commissioners she served with, has failed to earn endorsements because of her continued effort to put herself and her interests ahead of the community's. Just look at her quotes: it's never about what she's going to do to help Washtenaw County (except when she says we need a water feature).
trespass
Fri, Aug 3, 2012 : 11:24 a.m.
"For a guy my age and with my experience, I'm a pretty good coalition builder," LaBarre said. LaBarre doesn't have to build a coalition because he is supported by and will join Conan Smith's coalition. He is working as a lobbyist and he is obviously building a resume for higher office. I would rather have someone who is independent and will actually listen to her constituents.
KeepingItReal
Fri, Aug 3, 2012 : 5:26 p.m.
trespass. My sentiment exactly. He has the support of all county commissioners who live in Ann Arbor and all of the City Council. While I am not an admirer of Montague, I feel that Leah Gunn and the contingency of county board members is only trying to maintain control. LaBarre is not an independent voice and never will be and is preparing himself for his run once Dingell is out of office. It is sickening to have to be represented by politrickers such as Andy.
motorcycleminer
Fri, Aug 3, 2012 : 11:08 a.m.
Jesse's girl ...I want to be jesse's girl...hottest tune in the 7th district primary...
Leah Gunn
Fri, Aug 3, 2012 : 10:59 a.m.
Ms. Monague ought to get to know her new district. She is sadly misinformed if she thinks the housing in the district south of I-94 along Ellsworth Rd. is "so new". That housing (the co-ops and the Arbor Oaks subdivision, known collectively as the Bryant neighborhood) have been there since the 1970s. I know, because it is part of my county commissioner district, and formerly that of the late Commissioner Meri Lou Murray. Meri Lou and I campaigned there in 1972, the first year she was elected. Hardly "new".