Republican Carl DeMaio speaks in Clara Colt Hall

by abby hamblin
news editor

With the primary election just months away, the PLNU College Republicans decided it was time to get to know the candidates for San Diego mayor. They started on Tuesday, Jan. 17, in Clara Colt Hall by hosting Carl DeMaio, a Republican candidate, at their first meeting of the semester.
“It was great for the students, especially the political science majors, to have an experience like this,” said sophomore PLNU College Republicans President Shannon Leonard. “If he’s eventually our mayor, it can only be beneficial for him to know about us and us to know about him.”
DeMaio is currently the San Diego city councilman for District 5, whose website nicknames him “businessman-turned-civic watchdog” and reports that his simple pledge is to “clean up City Hall.” This was not his first visit to a San Diego university.
“I have spoken at SDSU and at USD and plan to do an event at every university that will host me,” DeMaio said via e-mail. “I think it’s vital to our civic system to have students involved in government, whether it’s volunteering or simply voting. Our students are essential to the future of this city.”
The College Republicans, under new leadership this school year, got off to a slow start, but Leonard said she wanted the semester to start off with a bang.
“I wasn’t sure what to expect, but it ended up being a great group that was able to have a more personal experience where they could have their questions addressed in a more intimate setting,” Leonard said.
After soda and pizza, DeMaio took the floor to give a brief biography and discuss his business-focused model for government reform, spending the majority of his time talking about his “Roadmap to Recovery,” a five-year financial recovery plan that, according to carldemaio.com, balances the city’s budget and restructures long-term city finances to eliminate the city’s structural budget deficit. DeMaio said that because he is a businessperson, he wants to specify what he would do as mayor.
“If there is a better idea out there that someone has and they don’t like my idea, put it on the table because I’ll take your idea and make it part of a joint plan,” DeMaio said. “I also want accountability. With specificity comes accountability and the transparency that that creates.”
Students voiced their questions about the Chargers’ stadium, Qualcomm, and military veteran support, among other issues.
Associate professor of political science Lindsey Lupo, who attended the event, said any exposure to political leaders is beneficial for the college community, and she hopes it helps contribute to more interest in politics among the youth.
“They make decisions that are critical to our lives,” Lupo said. “We are lucky enough to live in a democracy where we have choices. If democracy is for the people and by the people, and the people don’t participate, then the democracy collapses. The decisions are going to be made by the political leaders, so you can either give your input or stand back and let it happen without you.”
Lupo said some of the most pressing issues of the coming mayoral election are pension reform, repairing aging infrastructure, building a new stadium for the Chargers and generally ensuring the economic health of the city.
“These things matter in terms of how much we pay in local taxes, working conditions for our municipal workers, whether or not Comic Con and the Chargers stay in San Diego, if we have clean beaches and what the job market prospects are for our graduating seniors, among many other things,” Lupo said.
Junior political science major Tim Carlton said DeMaio addressed issues he had never considered before.
“It was a special opportunity for me as a political science major to see someone who stands a legitimate chance at being in public office and learn about some of the issues that our city faces in this upcoming election,” Carlton said.
Leonard said the College Republicans would love to host another candidate if they can work it out. PLNU College Democrats President Matt Rhoads said the College Democrats are also interested in hosting a candidate in the future.
“I think any candidate exposure to PLNU is good,” Rhoads said. “Having a candidate come onto campus lets them see a group of younger voters and to
see what issues mean a lot to them. Also, having a candidate at PLNU would hopefully spark political interests of students who are not in
the political science department.”
Rhoads said the two clubs are taking steps to become more active on campus.
“I feel the Republican Club did a good thing by having a Republican mayoral candidate come onto campus,” Rhoads said. “In the future, I want to do a joint panel of guests representing both parties to answer questions students have in regard to political issues. Both clubs want the campus to become more politically involved; by working together, I believe we can achieve this goal this year.”