The past few months have seen plenty of conversation and debate within the city of Florence as we have had competition for the mayor’s office and two citywide council seats.
That’s a positive sign and shows much energy and interest in our city’s future.
Tuesday, our voters will decide on who our mayor is to be for the next four years.
Frank Willis, who has been serving as mayor since 1995, is facing opposition in the Democratic primary from Stephen Wukela.
There is no Republican opposition, so it is expected that the person who wins Tuesday will be the next mayor.
Competition for the two open citywide council seats, in which there are three candidates for two seats in each party’s primary, means these seats will be contested in November.
In the mayor’s race, we feel that Willis’ strong experience not only as mayor but in many positions outside the mayor’s office make him the best candidate.
Wukela brings a youthful enthusiasm and urgency to the race.
But as Florence faces key issues in the coming years, Willis’ track record makes him the best choice.
His past speaks for itself if you look at all the accomplishments during his terms.
They have not been achieved by him alone, but his quiet, behind the scenes leadership has been key to any number of accomplishments.
It’s not an easy task to lead a city council and a city as diverse as Florence, but Willis has done a good job.
Do we wish the pace of improvement, especially downtown, were faster — yes.
And we also wish Willis and city council had shown more urgency and leadership in our community’s appearance.
But that’s not an issue just for the mayor and city council.
It’s one that county council and other community leaders need to push.
Florence is on the verge of making tremendous headway.
If you look back at where we were in 1995, our progress and growth is amazing.
As we said, the mayor alone didn’t make it happen, and going forward, the mayor can’t do it alone.
But Willis has shown the ability to bring people together to make things happen.
That’s what we need, especially for the next four years.
Editor’s note: The Morning News editorial board interviewed candidates and is making endorsements in contested primary races where there is no November opposition. Races include candidates who represent all or parts of Florence and Darlington counties.
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