GETTING PAST THE BICKERING
Jim Reynolds, appointed mayor a year ago, was elected to a full term. Voters were happy with the way things went the past year, he said.
“A number said they were embarrassed by the bickering and contentiousness of the past,” he said late Tuesday. “I wasn’t here, and just heard about it.”
Reynolds said he and mayoral candidate Norm Semanko have a lot in common but different approaches.
“Norm is a fighter. He fights for issues. He’s passionate, and I love that about him,” Reynolds said. “My approach is to create consensus.”
QUINTANA, CAMPAIGNING UNTIL THE LAST MINUTE
Ben Quintana, who handily won his race for the open seat on the Boise City Council, said he made his last campaign calls at about 7:35 p.m. — less than a half hour before polls closed. He’s been campaigning hard since the summer, when he stepped down from his job with the Boise Metro Chamber of Commerce.
“Every single day since then I’ve been knocking on doors, calling people, setting up meetings. That’s how I got over 100 endorsements,” Quintana said. “I wanted to make sure I was reaching out, continuing to listen to people.”
His first goals: supporting job initiatives, “bringing new ideas to make our city more entrepreneur-friendly,” he said.
EBERLE: BOISEANS ARE SATISFIED
David Eberle chalked up his easy win over challenger David Honey to the fact that a recent city survey found 70 percent in favor of the direction in which the city is heading.
“People want Boise to continue to be a great place to live,” said Eberle. He intends to “stay the course,” and to focus on bringing more prosperity to the community.
NAMPA TURNS OUT HOMER
The night’s big upset was the ouster of Seat 4 Councilman Curtis Homer.
“I think there’s just a general sense that the mayor and City Council are not spending money wisely,” winner Bob Henry said. “That’s what I was hammering on.”
Homer said he’s enjoyed serving the city but won’t mind having more time for family. “All the hoopla over the (city’s) taxes made a difference, and I’ll be interested to see how he can lower our taxes,” Homer said.
ENTREPRENEUR WINS CALDWELL
In Caldwell, incumbents Jim Blacker and Shannon Ozuna held on to their seats. The seat vacated by Bob Sobba was claimed by social media entrepreneur David Clark, who said he plans to work with other council members to “really scrutinize the budget” to find ways to trim spending so that money can be used to market Caldwell to job-creating businesses.
