Tuesday, November 5 was Election Day for the Knoxville City Mayor and four City Council seats. While most students were just glad for the day off, the election results made history that we should all learn a little bit about.
Meet the new Mayor: Indya Kincannon
Now the second female mayor in city history, Kincannon is previously and most well-known as a member of the Knox County school board and staffer of incumbent Mayor Madeline Rogero. Kincannon won by a narrow margin of 4.8% against Eddie Mannis. Her main focus going into office consists of important issues like climate change, strong neighborhoods, quality schools, and homelessness among many things. Kincannon even took it upon herself to visit many of centers for these issues, including a number of local schools and shelters.
Knoxville City Council
For the first time in city history, Knoxville has elected a majority female city council. All three at-large City Council seats were won by women. Lynne Fugate won Seat A against Charles Lomax Jr., Janet Testerman won Seat B against David Hayes, and Amelia Parker won Seat C against Amy Midis. All three candidates won by mostly slim margins -no larger than 10%.
Fugate is an avid volunteer and a former member of the Knox County school board, similar to Kincannon. She has held many positions across town, including a banker for a number of years.
Testerman is the CEO of Young-Williams Animal Center and a former catering business owner. She’s been involved in many of Knoxville’s nonprofit and communications organizations over the years.
Parker is a Kentucky native and a UTK alumni. She was an executive director at Peace Brigades International, a company that strives to use nonviolent solutions in conflict zones around the world.
The last position to be decided was the District 5 City Council seat, which was won by Charles Thomas over Charles Al-Bawi by a large margin of around 25%. Thomas is a lawyer in Knoxville and an advocate for businesses and thriving urban economy. As city council member, this is what he plans to focus on.
The saying about ripples make waves is certainly true, especially with the presidential election coming up in 2020. Investing even a little bit of time into local government and politics means investing in the nation as a whole.
More from The Bobcat Times
The Bobcat Times 