It’s been quite an interesting campaign this year to see who gets chosen to be mayor for the next four years in Florence.
Incumbent Frank Willis was expected to win in the Democratic primary against Stephen Wukela.
But Wukela, who campaigned hard against the incumbent, ended up winning by one vote.
There was considerable confusion among voters about who could and couldn’t vote in the election and lots of potential votes possibly for both candidates didn’t get counted or weren’t cast in the first place.
After a legal battle, Wukela was declared the winner.
But former mayor Rocky Pearce decided to enter the race and in about two weeks had more than enough signatures (more than either Wukela or Willis got in the primary) of qualified voters to put him on the ballot as a petition candidate.
So Tuesday, voters get to have their say one more time.
The campaign has certainly energized both sides and created lots of discussion about the key issues facing Florence.
And that’s been good for the community.
The Morning News supported Willis in the primary based on the overall improvements and accomplishments in Florence during his terms as mayor.
Was there more to be done? Yes.
Were there some issues that needed to be addressed in a more convincing way? Yes.
But the accomplishments far outweighed the negatives.
Pearce, several years removed from the mayor’s office, has built a very successful small business in Florence and has been very involved in recruiting businesses to come to our community.
Those experiences will serve him well as mayor.
He realizes that changes need to be made — community appearance, dealing with crime and infrastructure and helping bring the community together.
Wukela has continued the role of “challenging the establishment.”
But his second guessing of things such as the Florence Civic Center, Freedom Florence, the Veterans Memorial Park, the location of the Francis Marion University Performing Arts Center, the Florence Little Theatre and others wear a little thin.
He criticizes, but he offers no real solutions.
He talks about funding new police officers with money the city spent on the Veterans Park. But he doesn’t realize that was accommodations tax money that can’t all be used for police officers, and that the park helps bring in more tax money over time that will help pay not only for police officers but also other city services.
We understand the campaign tactic. And he has tapped into a frustration and impatience with our city and in some cases the county’s lack of progress on many fronts.
But once the election is over we need real leadership on several fronts.
We need a mayor who can work with all members of city council to move us forward.
We need a mayor who can work with the “establishment” and those who feel neglected or under served.
We need a mayor who realizes that we have the infrastructure in place to make Florence a better place.
We need a mayor who is about more than “party politics.”
And that person is Rocky Pearce.
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