Incumbents sweep City Council election

Incumbents Corene McDaniel and Chris Wissmann maintained their seats on the Carbondale City Council, and Joel Fritzler took a third open seat as the polls closed on the election Tuesday night.

After dominating the primary election with 23 percent of the vote, McDaniel again took the top vote in the general election by garnering 23 percent. Wissmann had the second most votes with 21 percent, and Fritzler edged out Don Barrett by 78 votes for the third spot. The trio will be sworn in May 3, when they will officially begin their four-year term. Although it is the first election win for Fritzler, he is not unfamiliar with the process. In 2003, Fritzler ran against Wissmann for a two-year spot on the council but lost.

Because of Fritzler's involvement with the city as the first director of the Carbondale Main Street Program, he said as a councilmember, he wants to start rejuvenating some of the older neighborhoods in the city. "There has been a lot of neglect of the older areas of town," Fritzler said. "I'm not against development, but I think there needs to be a balance between new development and the older neighborhoods." Wissmann said even though he has already been on the council, he is still excited about serving a second term. He said he wants to continue to focus on economic development in the city.

"We need to continue the work we have been doing in terms of economic development," Wissmann said. "We have too much slum housing. We need to make it better." This was the third election through which McDaniel has been. In her first campaign for the council, she was not voted on but secured her first four-year term in 2000. She said the work she has done on the council has proven her to be a trustworthy councilwoman, and she attributed the victory this year to her track record.

"I think that they believe in me and know that I am honest and show a great deal of integrity," McDaniel said. "I think they see that in me, and they wanted to have me remain on the council." Angie Kaye was the only candidate to come to the Jackson County Courthouse in Murphysboro during the vote tally and not leave with a win. Even though she did not get elected, she said she was glad to have had the experience and may run again in the next election. "It was a fun time," Kaye said. "I'm not real disappointed; I just wish more people would have voted."