In politics, it is often difficult to tell if a person running for office is genuine, or if what we see of them is merely a public persona. Indeed, in the current presidential race part of the appeal of Sanders and even (I’m sorry to say) Trump is that they appear to be completely genuine. It isn’t an act for them. What you see is what you get.

This dynamic extends down into local-level politics as well. For Bon Tindle, who recently announced she is running for city council in 2017, her campaign is all about authenticity. “I want people to know who they are voting for,” she told me, “If, after a year [of campaigning], people decide they want to vote for someone else that’s fine, but people won’t be voting for an actor.”

Bon’s decision to run for council stems from her view that the city government in Springfield has grown dethatched from the people they represent. She told me that she is working on a “Stories of Springfield” book, saying “People are dying to tell me about how they don’t feel heard by the council. Council has forgotten that they work for the people, instead they are treating Springfield like a bunch of stupid children.”

Much of her frustration stems from issues she has with Zone 2 Councilmember Justin Burnett and General Councilmember Kristi Fulnecky.

Of Burnett’s recent resignation and rescindment, she said she has “no faith that anything he starts will finish.”

“I felt like he made a mockery of everybody. I’m tired of the yo-yo, I want someone who is going to stick around and fix our zone. I see Burnett messing around with Nipples and “In God We Trust” while his people are hungry and cold. So far, he’s only been interested in representing the constituents who agree with him.”

Regarding Kristi Fulnecky, Bon simply remarked, “Fulnecky? I feel like she hasn’t proven she can do this job, and yet she is using it as a stepping stone to grab more power.” On the council for less than a year, Kristi Fulnecky announced recently that she would be running for mayor in 2017.

However, Bon wanted it to be clear that while she is frustrated with the two councilmembers, they are not her only reason for running. “I didn’t just run because I’m mad at Burnett and Fulnecky. I’ve been thinking about what I can do that they don’t.”

Most of Bon’s criticisms of Burnett and Fulnecky stem from her work as a journalist. She has traded barbs with both Fulnecky and Burnett in the past and become well known for her ardent stance against their polices and politics. She said, however, that she’s “not running against either one of them” and her “journalism stands on its own.” On the views expressed in her journalism, Bon said, “That isn’t all of me, in the next year they will see the compromising Bon.”

Bon told me she is adamant about helping the homeless population and alleviating poverty in Springfield, issues she feels the council has largely ignored. She has yet to decide exactly which council seat she will be running for, and with it so early in her campaign, she is reluctant to spell out any concrete plans just yet. “I don’t want to start throwing out absolutes because that’s what got us here in the first place,” she told me, alluding to the ideological issues and infighting that plague the council. She added, ‘There is a segment of the population in this city that I feel is not represented, I don’t know what to call them because they cross all demographics, but they are there, and I want to represent them.”

 

Image: Bon Tindle / Facebook