Youngstown council needs a leader with experience

The Nov. 4 general election battle for the presidency of Youngstown City Council must be viewed in the context of the political changes taking place in city hall. There will be three new members of council come January, and there will be a new mayor starting in 2006. Thus, voters must decide if it is important to Youngstown's future to have individuals with experience in city government.
We think so, which is why we endorse James E. Fortune Sr. for council president. Fortune, now 6th Ward councilman, won the Democratic nomination in the May primary over incumbent John R. Swierz, who was appointed to the position April 17, 2002.
Fortune, a lawmaker for more than two decades, is being challenged by Republican Tracey Winbush, a member of the Youngstown school board. While Winbush's take-no-prisoners approach to campaigning -- "We know if Fortune wins there will be the same [for the next four years] we have had for the past 50 years," she quips -- may well invigorate an apathetic voting populace in the city, her inexperience cannot be ignored.
She is stepping down from the school board after just one, four-year term. And that gives us pause. During her 1999 campaign, she insisted that her candidacy was based on her concern for the children of the city and her despair over the Youngstown school system's low academic standing in Ohio.
Little improvement
Winbush certainly can't make the case that her job on the school board is done. The Youngstown School District remains one of the worst in the Mahoning Valley, if not the state, and so voters have a right to ask whether someone who has only served one term should be given even greater responsibility.
Fortune, on the other hand, is well prepared to take over the helm in council. As president pro tem and chairman of the finance committee, he not only has worked closely with other legislators but has been involved with Mayor George M. McKelvey and members of his administration in the formulation of long-term plans for the city.
"I'm very much interested in being an information source for the young councilmen coming in," the veteran lawmaker told Vindicator writers. "I will be instructing the secretaries [council staff] to call me if council members cannot be reached in emergency situations."
Fortune, who won the Democratic primary by a mere 25 votes, contends there isn't widespread dissatisfaction with the way government is operating and points to the passage of the income tax increase as proof of the public's attitude.
But Winbush disagrees, arguing that the failure of the city to secure a private developer to invest in the proposed convocation/community center is proof that things aren't going well in city hall.
Fortune counters that "people understand that government moves slowly."
Given the changes that will occur in city government, The Vindicator believes that an experienced legislator should lead city council.