Mayor JOSEPH LEROY BOLES, JR. Faces Contested Election for Mayor

Competing elites are fun to watch. Controversial St. Augustine Mayor JOSEPH LEROY BOLES, Jr. said he was qualified to be Mayor because of his "sense of humor." He's proceeded to run roughshod over public rights to open, honest, transparent government. He demanded that Dr. Dwight Hines "pay the piper" for filing an Open Records suit. Dwight won. BOLES had egg on his face.
BOLES often insults and condescends to citizen concerns in public comment.
BOLES reduced the time and gerrymandered the timing to discourage public comment.
BOLES made unkind and inhumane remarks about the homeless being "scary" and "creepy."
BOLES is the "scary" and "creepy" one, regarding St. Augustine as if he were Ben Carthwright and this were "Bonanza."
BOLES, a putative Democrat, supports the re-election of known Republican Dr. William L. Proctor, our state representative from Flagler College. of which he is Chancellor.
BOLES and the rest of the ancien regime in City Hall couldn't be bothered to sit down with U.S. Senator Bill Nelson. BOLES briefly gladhanded before the lunch, but left before it started. He and his fellow Commissioners and City Manager WILLIAM B. HARRISS were just too important to sit down with Senator Nelson, who impressively spoke without a note and answered official and guest questions. For our city to expect federal funds for its 450th birthday and blow off a U.S. Senator's invitation shows that our City Hall is too stupid to lead.
Enter Bill Lennon, a former Commissioner. He's got some rough edges and was rude to public commenters when he served before. But has Lennon learned his lesson? Will Lennon run as a populist and call for significant budget cuts (see story below on nine county health and human services administrators laid off this week).
Will Lennon support the St. Augustine National Historical Park, National Seashore and National Scenic Coastal Highway>
Will Lennon support a national search for a new City Manager and new City Attorney?
Will Lennon support restoration of artists and entertainers to St. George Street?
Will Lennon disclose and/or cut his ties with former Mayor Len Weeks?
Will Lennon support appointment of an Inspector General and Ombuds and transparency?
Will Lennon support an open public hearing on misfeasance, malfeasance and nonfeasance during the administration of City Manager WILLIAM B. HARRISS, allowing HARRISS due process rights to defend himself (on-camera, since PR apparatchik Cathy DuPont will never focus the camera on our bossy City Manager, WILLIAM B. HARRISS.
Our American Founders believed in the perfectability of human nature. Sure, Lennon's not perfect, and has some fences to mend. But hopefully Lennon (unlike BOLES) is s not in bed with City Manager WILLIAM B. HARRISS.
HARRISS' illegal dumping of solid waste in our Old City Reservoir would have led to his firing anywhere else in America, and most of the world, from Afghanistan to Zambia.