Why I'm running again

I have no DONATION tab, as I hope to self-fund this campaign and accept zero donations. I will still report my own spending and in-kind donations as needed, but please do NOT offer any donations.

I was elected to my current Ward 3 council seat in 2021. By the fall of 2022 I was seriously thinking of quitting. I put in so much effort to stay current on so many issues in the city, and I was not sure I was making an impact. But, little by little I started to see changes I wanted to see taking place and was making a bigger impact. My time on the DDA (Downtown Development Authority) helped me move forward on some things (parking garage upgrades, electrical connections downtown, planning for Heart of Golden, trail under Ford St, fish passage efforts), that had me feeling good about my impact. I also, through my work on the Boards and Commissions sub-committee, was able to make improvements to city processes and help get stellar candidates for our boards. Likewise on the Legislative sub-committee with first Councilor Trout, and then Councilor Vitry, we made meaningful input and suggested changes to many, many bills in the legislature. And, behind the scenes I have made many connections and introductions of neighbors to staff to resolve issues for the betterment of the city. One of the very meaningful activities was engagement with the REDI (Racial Equity Diversity and Inclusion) task force, which is still viable, still working, and still providing a welcoming venue for a diverse group of citizens. And of course, there is the day-to-day work of city Councilor itself, meeting with peers, meeting with the city manager, reading and providing input on our extensive “packets” for meetings, and improving or just protecting what we hold dear. For example, with councilor Reed, we met with city fire officials and others to help get the ballot question for a mill levy for fire on the ballot, it was approved, and we have, as a result, a stable and growing paid firefighting force to protect the city more assuredly than our volunteers could provide.

I am running again because I know I have been effective, I have made positive changes, I have represented my constituents (and frankly many who are outside my ward) as best I can, and I want to continue to protect what is great about Golden and help it move forward. I have looked around for others in the ward who share my values and energy, and could win in a local race (name recognition is huge) and I found no one who, in my opinion, was better than me. So, there it is…I’m the best candidate, and that is why I’m running again.

As a Councilor, and not mayoral candidate, I can only be so ambitious with respect to changes I want to see or guide. But I will say that I would like to push the government to run more efficiently, with an eye on code that is convoluted and burdensome. I’m excited to see how the new Arts and Culture Board and Community Marketing Boards work out to engage a broad group of stakeholders in providing direction for economic and cultural development.

Don CameronJune 10, 2025