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EDITORIAL: Windsor needs to fix its other mayor problem

The Press Democrat - 5/29/2021

May 28—The overdue resignation of Mayor Dominic Foppoli creates some opportunities for Windsor.

There is the obvious, of course. With Foppoli gone, the town gets a little relief from the scandal that engulfed its ex-mayor. Nine women have accused Foppoli of rape and other sexual abuse, with police investigations underway in California and Florida.

Foppoli denies the allegations, but Windsor residents and erstwhile political allies abandoned him when the story broke, and a recall campaign quickly formed.

The remaining council members must decide what to do about the final 17 months of his term. They can appoint a replacement or schedule a special election. If the council picks one of its own to be mayor, that would create another vacancy — leading to yet another appointment or a special election.

A special council election would be Windsor's second this year.

Which brings us to the council's other opportunity.

Windsor set itself up for a perpetual political campaign season, with all the fundraising and electioneering that entails, with the unusual model it settled on for the shift from at-large elections to district elections for the Town Council.

Windsor faced a lawsuit alleging that its election system violated the California Voting Rights Act. These cases have proven difficult for cities to win, so Windsor, like Santa Rosa and many other cities, opted to switch to district elections and pay the plaintiffs about $30,000 for legal fees.

Instead of creating five districts and retaining Windsor's tradition of rotating the mayoralty among its members, the council opted for four districts plus a mayor elected at-large.

Here's where they created a problem: the council members serve four-year terms, but the mayor's term is two years. So Windsor's mayor is always on the ballot.

In 2020, the first election under the new system, two incumbents — Foppoli and Sam Salmon — ran for mayor. For them, it was a free ride: win and become mayor, lose and complete the last two years of your council term.

Foppoli won. Before he was sworn in as mayor, he resigned his council seat, and the council eventually scheduled a special election to fill the vacancy.

Foppoli's legal problems magnified the effects of the unbalanced terms. By the time the election for his council seat was over, he was under pressure to quit. With his resignation, the five-member council is back down to four.

If his successor is one of the present council members — and it wouldn't be surprising if they opted for a mayor with experience in office — that person will have to resign their council seat, creating the third vacancy in less than a year. The new mayor's term ends in 2022. If voters pick an incumbent council member, there could be still another vacancy.

Council members are elected officials, and voters lose control when vacancies are filled by appointment. District elections add a new twist — those doing the appointing live in other districts. However, special elections are costly and time-consuming, potentially leaving voters without representation for several months.

Now is the time for the council to rectify its mistake. There are obvious alternatives: set the same terms, preferably four years, for the mayor and council members, or return to five council members — elected by district — with the mayoralty rotating among them. Either way, the council needs to act before the next game of musical chairs begins at Windsor Town Hall.

You can send letters to the editor to letters@pressdemocrat.com.

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