Shawn Keough for Dexter Mayor

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I’d like to tell you why I’ll be voting for Shawn Keough for Mayor of the City of Dexter next week and why I think you should vote for him too, if you’ll give me a few minutes of your time. Before I get into it, you should know that Shawn and I have been neighbors and friends for about 20 years, but that’s not why I’m going to vote for him. And I’m not voting for Shawn because I always agree with him on the issues, because I don’t. I served on the Dexter Planning Commission for more than 15 years and I served on Dexter City Council for two years, from November 2018 through November 2020. Those experiences gave me the opportunity to see Shawn “in action” as mayor on many occasions and in many different settings. So, my opinion comes from personal observation as well as experience working in public service with Shawn. So why am I going to vote for Shawn Keough for mayor? Here are some of the reasons:

Shawn works harder for Dexter than anyone I know. One of the things I learned from my time on City Council was how much time these folks put into their elected positions. More than just a couple City Council meetings a month, there’s a packet of information to review before each meeting that’s hundreds of pages long, and there are also a lot of other committee meetings and working sessions. All Council members put in a lot of time. But Shawn, as Mayor, does more than most. Did you know that Shawn works an average of 8 to 10 hours a week in his job as Mayor of Dexter? That’s a full day of work every week, on top of his “regular job” as vice president at a civil engineering firm. And Shawn does it without hesitation or complaint, because that’s what he was elected to do.
Shawn is fiscally responsible. Shawn knows that he has a great responsibility as an elected official to care for the public funds that come from the taxes paid by hardworking people for public projects like roads, water supply, sewers, and trails. For example, through the years of debate over a new fire station, Shawn always supported investment in better fire department facilities, but he pushed back on the idea that those facilities had to cost millions of dollars more than other equally functional options.
Shawn is open-minded. What do I mean by open-minded? Well, I’ve watched Shawn speak with people who disagreed with him. Most people will naturally try to argue their own perspective first, to convince the other person. Shawn, on the other hand, tends to start by trying to fully understand where the other person is coming from. He asks questions and listens to the answers. I believe he does this because he knows there are more sides to issues than just his own opinion and that everyone deserves to be heard.
Shawn is even-tempered. When I say even-tempered, I mean he knows how to keep his cool, which is a very important quality in public office. I’ve watched as people have criticized him and, on occasion, even insulted him during public comments at City Council meetings. Shawn always listens respectfully, gives the speaker their due time to speak, and then thanks them for their comments. When a vote doesn’t go his way, Shawn graciously accepts the outcome, thanks all for participating, and moves on to the next order of business.
Shawn has community spirit. There have been so many times when I’ve seen Shawn make extra effort to pitch in and help the citizens of Dexter when he really didn’t have to, aside from his responsibilities as Mayor. Whether he’s spending his Saturday morning trimming back overhanging brush on the B2B trail (which he does several times every summer) or helping to prepare the luminaria that get distributed throughout the City every Christmas, Shawn always seems to have time to give to others. When my son was in Boy Scouts, Shawn happily met with groups of scouts for their Citizenship in the Community merit badge. This sort of things doesn’t necessarily have anything to do with doing the job of Mayor, but it does speak to the character of the person doing the job.

I believe that these qualities set Shawn apart from other candidates for Mayor. I don’t always agree with Shawn, but I always believe he’ll do what he believes is best for Dexter and he’ll do it with honesty, integrity, and respect for others.