2nd in a series of new posts on candidates for election 
Election Day Tuesday November 5!
You know how Gadfly feels about participation — BE THERE!
But, frankly, Gadfly, whose focus is narrowly on Bethlehem, is not the whirling dervish he was for the primary in May.
No mayoral election. No “real” Council election. No competition for these seats. No local choices there to be made.
Yep, yep, other important races — my phone is blowing up, my mail box stuffed with flyers, my front door a bulletin board for canvassing candidates.
But Gadfly just doesn’t feel all that engaged.
What to do?
Gadfly reminds you that Council is a likely pool for mayoral candidates in the next election, and, in any event, current Council members are likely to want to keep going on in their positions.
So we should always be paying attention, always gathering information.
Let’s remember that the soon-to-be-automatically-elected Council members did a very remarkable thing for the primary (that “very” is redundant, dammit, you should know better, Gadfly).
Successful candidates Colon, Reynolds, Van Wirt, and Crampsie Smith wrote 8 mini-essays — one each week — in response to Gadfly prompts in the run-up to the election.
Well, unsuccessful candidates Carpenter and Saltzer — Gadfly hopes you remember them and their energetic efforts — did that same very remarkable thing too. Tip o’ the hat to them, for sure.
Gadfly is still humbled by that amazing totally voluntary cooperation.
The goal was to get beyond stump speeches and sound bites and to help voters be much better informed about candidate positions when it came time to vote.
And feedback indicated to Gadfly that followers appreciated the effort that the candidates put in.
So let’s remember those probably sweated-over mini-essays.
But let’s go a step further.
Let’s literally refresh ourselves on their words, see how we feel about them now, and let’s hold those successful City Council candidates to those words.
Say it. Mean it.
No coasting down Victory Lane.
So here’s what Gadfly is suggesting for an election exercise.
He will compile and re-publish the 8 mini-essays for each soon-to-be-elected running unopposed City Council candidate one at a time over the next 4 days, beginning today.
You have the recent 5-month context as a point of reference for these three incumbents re-elected: Colon, Reynolds, Van Wirt.
Followers know that the Gadfly blog has much information on these three incumbents from their activity on Council, and Gadfly has been urging you to pay attention.
You are not obliged to vote for all three on Tuesday.
If you like what an individual’s been doing, vote twice for him or her (just k-i-d-d-i-n-g!).
If you have some reservation on one or more, withhold your vote accordingly.
You are not obliged to vote for all three.
I’m sure the candidates will be looking at total numbers as well as numbers from specific wards and comparing them to projections in this “off” year.
You might be able to use your vote to send a message.
Either I like what you’re doing. Or — ha! — you’d better shape up.
Get the idea.
Make your vote or lack thereof count.
Make this “dead” local Council election interesting for you.
Re-assess.
Mentally make the candidates still earn your vote.
Scrutinize again what they presented on Gadfly during primary time.
Alphabetical order.
Michael Colon coming up!
Vote!
Election Day
Tuesday November 5