I’m in the democracy business.

By Wally Bobkiewicz, City Manager, Evanston, IL

This is what I often tell people when I first meet them. Explaining what a City Manager does takes a few sentances, but saying you are in the democracy business always gets people’s attention. Our work as local government managers is sometimes complex, sometime tedious, but never boring because we have such a high calling: implementing democracy at the local level.

In my career as a City Manager, I have been hired by a City Council with one agenda for the community, only to have pivot the agenda when a completely new City Council was elected by the voters. In order to ensure the will of those local voters, I was asked to undo initiatives that took years to create and focus on new priorities.  As City Managers in the democracy business, that is what we do.

Tuesday’s election has provided a new challenge for many local government managers.

The voters of the United States Tuesday decided to change the policy direction of our nation in ways we will not be able totally understand for some time. For some communities, this change will more closely align with local community standards.  For others, the change in policy direction will be significantly different.  I work in a community where this change in direction is almost completely opposite of the current community standards.

There is shock and disbelief about these national election results in my community. But for me, after my own personal reflection on the results, I find myself oddly energized.

What tremendous challenges lie ahead for me, my City Council and my community. I am now confronted with how to continue advancing my City’s policies and goals in a very new environment. What can I do to help my elected officials go through their own process of understanding these results?  How does my City now advocate for resources for a community that has no majority voice in the national government?  And how does my City re-double our efforts of community engagement to make sure we really do understand the needs of our residents in a clearly changed world?

Addressing these questions are why I am a local government manager. Implementing democracy at the local level isn’t always easy, and not always straightforward, but is critical to our continued republic.

So as local government managers throughout the country personally and professionally think through the results of Tuesday’s election, I urge all of us to consider our critical role in this changing time. Our elected officials and communities need professional local government managers today more than ever.

Remember… we all are in the democracy business.

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