BOISE, Idaho — Voters in Boise have a lot to consider on election day, with nothing more important than who will be the city's Mayor for the next four years. Here's a look at the four candidates on this year's ballot and how they view the men and women in blue.
The city has seen explosive growth but it has also been marred by issues within the police department.
When the issue of racism raised its ugly head with a former Boise Police Captain, Mayor Lauren McLean said she had to be clear it wasn't a bigger problem on the force. I asked her specifically about it.
"Well, I appreciate the question, there was an issue we addressed that was shocking to all of us. The community was reeling, as was the police department," replied McLean.
The city paid a Washington D.C. law firm hundreds of thousands of dollars to investigate whether racism was a bigger problem within the Boise Police Department. The firm said no, they determined it was not. McLean's biggest challenger, former police chief Mike Masterson, says the mayor didn't follow the city's policies of identifying the scope of work, the cost, and the timeline.
"We hand-picked an East Coast law firm when we had an equally competent company right here that could have helped us in that investigation. And of course, we saw the outcome much like we predicted. That it was the views of one troubled individual who created a lot of stern and controversy in this community," says Masterson.
Candidate Joe Evans, a homeless working veteran, says he supports the men and women in blue but is quick to talk about what he views as the criminalization of poverty in Idaho. Evans says the organizational skills he learned in the Army make him qualified to run for Mayor.
"I've been a part of the executive organization for several deployments overseas in Afghanistan and Iraq. I was not only helping U.S. facilities set up and establish, I was also acting as an advisor for things involving economics in the areas we were working in," explains Evans.
Candidate Aaron Reiss says he's running but wants to focus on housing, saying "Wages, wages, wages. We have to create housing that we call affordable, [because today] the markets are cruel and soulless."
Election Day is Tuesday, November 7.
