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10/03/2023
**I interrupt our regular Positively Plymouth content for a brief bit of politics (I know, I’m sorry! But this one's a little different…)**
I'm Kelly O'Donnell, owner of Positively Plymouth and a Plymouth City Commissioner. I'm running for a second term on the Commission, and I hope I have and will continue to earn your vote on November 7 to represent Plymouth for another four years.
But I'm spending exactly $0 on my re-election campaign.
I'm pretty sure this makes me really bad at being a politician. But it makes me good at being a human who can live with herself on Nov. 8, win or lose. Let me explain...
The amount of money spent on local elections makes it really hard for regular people, with regular incomes, to run. Even $1,000 (which is a lot for many families, including mine!) doesn't go far in the campaign arms race. It's better for democracy if it doesn't take a personal fortune to run for elected office, so I'm going to try to be part of the solution to de-escalate the local campaign spending spree.
The alternative to self-funding my campaign is accepting contributions—and I just won’t do it. Many good people have offered to donate money to my campaign, and I have politely declined. I never want to feel that I owe anyone anything as an elected official. I don’t know what issues I might need to vote on one day, and I can’t predict who will be in a position to ask for a “favor”. I want to continue to be unbiased, acting in the best interest of the taxpayers of the City first, last and always. For me, that means not accepting money from anyone as an elected official, even one running a campaign.
So, I have arrived at my $0 campaign. No yard signs, no t-shirts, no buttons, no flyers or postcards or door hangtags or banners, no pretty custom website. I might lose because of this, but I would rather lose with my values intact.
But I still hope to earn one of the four seats, and the chance to represent you all for four more years. If you’d like to help, here’s how:
1. Endorse me! Share this post, and tell your spouse/adult kids/neighbors/friends you are voting for Kelly O’Donnell for one of the four Plymouth City Commission seats. I’m grateful for your support in the voting booth on November 7! I’m also appreciative of any community groups who choose to endorse me (thank you, Plymouth Democratic Club🙌!). If your community group would like to interview me and see if my track record earns your endorsement, please contact me!
2. Come to the City Commission candidate forum on Oct. 3 at 7 p.m. at City Hall. All seven candidates will be there answering voters’ questions so you can get informed about where we all stand on the issues that are important to you. A recording of the forum will be at www.LWVnorthwestwayne.org if you can't make it in person.
3. Review my answers at www.vote411.org and compare them to the other candidates. You may also schedule a time to talk to me personally at https://calendly.com/odonnellkelly or meet with me in person at my drop-in "meet and greets":
--Lion's Park (Burroughs St.): Friday, October 6 @ 4 p.m
--Louise Markham Park (Caster St.): Sunday, October 15 @ 3 p.m.
--Kiwanis Park (Auburn St.): Tuesday, Oct. 24 @ 6:30 p.m.
So that’s my campaign strategy…I’m opting out of the local campaign spending madness! Crazy...or sane?
