League of Women Voters Candidate Forum set for March 30, 2023

The Mexico- Audrain County League of Women Voters will host a Candidate Forum for City Council and School Board Candidates Thursday, March 30 at the Mexico YMCA beginning at 6:30 p.m. The Forum will be held in the pickleball court area. 

The League of Women Voters of Mexico-Audrain County is a nonpartisan political organization and cannot endorse or oppose any candidate for office. However, a basic purpose of the League is to promote informed voting. The League makes every effort to assist candidates in presenting their opinion(s) to the voters. 

Each candidate was contacted by the League and asked two questions pertaining to the election. Their responses to these questions as well as their answers to questions submitted by the audience attending the Forum will make up the program. The Forum is open to the public and all are encouraged to attend.

Candidates were asked two questions, with a 200-word answer limit for each.

Question 1:  What are your qualifications for a position on the Mexico City Council?

Question 2: Identify two issues you would like to see addressed by the Mexico City Council during the upcoming term. How would you recommend these issues be addressed?

Larry Webber

1. I really don't know what qualifications are necessary for a council seat but my opinion is that the desire to participate, have a bit of intelligence, have and use common sense and not have an "axe to grind" are necessary attributes for the "board" of any organization including the Council. If being involved in other organizations is important, I have been involved in the Chamber of Commerce, Rotary Club, Progress Mexico, A.P. Green Foundation, as well as several others. I have owned a pharmacy in Mexico for over 40 years. I was married to Laurann, also a pharmacist, who is now deceased and we have two sons, Justin (wife Amy) and Brendan (wife Melissa) and have two granddaughters (Brinley and Lena) and one grandson (Judd). I know that I'm repeating myself but I think the biggest qualifications are to have the desire to be involved, the willingness to do the work and be able to devote the time necessary to do the job. I have all three of those.

2. I'm happy to identify a couple of issues but I will say that I don't truly believe that anyonee can run for an office and really know what needs to be addressed until he or she has some knowledge about what really goes on on a day-to-day basis in the organization. From my perspective, I'm concerned (like everyone else) about health care in Mexico, specifically the need for a quality hospital. At this point, I don't really know how or if the city has been involved in the hospital situation but am convinced that it will need to be a very important piece of the puzzle. Regulations and laws are involved and I'm sure that the city will need to make some recommendations and decisions in the very near future.

A second thought is related to "transparency." From my perspective, i'm convinced that the council and administration are as transparent as they can be considering the confidentiality of many issues with which they deal. I do believe that more public communication about issues would be very helpful in trying to dispel rumors and clarifying issues such as potholes in streets and whose responsibility they are based upon location. This is just a very simple example but could, perhaps, give you an idea of how more communication could be beneficial.