Being a senior in college can be stressful: there are grad school applications to write, jobs to consider and interview for, as well as classes to attend and papers to write (or not, if senioritis hits you hard). But for one Asburian, senior year includes running for city council. Brett Gillispie, a senior political science major, French minor, resident of Johnson Hall, and native of Wilmore, has always been interested in political science and public policy.
“I’ve always been interested in things related to politics and democracy and such,” said Gillispie, “but what really got me into politics at this stage of my life is the killing of George Floyd in Minnesota … I think the issues of our generation are being decided right now and I really didn’t want to sit on the sidelines and watch as other people my age were getting involved.”
Before then, Gillispie had planned to get his master’s degree in public policy before pursuing a career in politics.
“The best and most direct way for someone to get involved in politics is with your local government,” he said. “They have so much control over your daily life, they’re really the face of government for you, especially in a town like Wilmore. The focus is always on Washington, D.C., but who has more sway in your daily life? President Trump, or your local mayor? Chances are, it’s probably your local mayor.”
Though it’s not as widely publicized, city council members do much of what any legislative bodies accomplish, only at a very small scale. Instead of creating and passing legislation, city councils pass formal ordinances regarding policing, garbage pick-up, zoning, property taxes, and community beautification. Gillispie refers to them as “bread-and-butter issues.”
For a first-time political candidate, this season has looked very different. With COVID-19 restrictions in place, canvassing and other campaign tactics have been nearly impossible, with social media campaigning options being the best to get the word out, Gillispie reports. Even with a pandemic, however, Election Day is edging closer and closer.
“Had this been a traditional campaign season, I would have been a lot more present than I am right now I think,” Gillispie said. “I’ve kind of had to judge what’s safe and responsible to do. Starting soon, I plan on starting some canvassing in a safe and socially-distant way. Since this is my hometown, there are a lot of people here that I know so I’ve been getting the word out that way too.”
“The biggest issues facing Wilmore comes down to accountability and communication with the city government,” said Gillispie, “so, right now, residents find it hard to communicate with their city council. Personally, I think in a town of 6,000 people, your city council should be readily available to you. Another key issue is the matter of affordable housing … they’ve prevented more affordable housing from being built, especially on our side — or the university side — of town. There’s clearly a center of gravity in this town and it’s clearly not benefitting the working families in our town.”
Gillispie also highlights Jessamine County’s opioid crisis.
“The third major thing I’d want to address is the opioid crisis, and that’s something that’s not talked about in our town at all,” he said. “Not only is Wilmore a place where people are consuming these hard drugs, they’re also being distributed elsewhere. I’d like to see Wilmore as a place where real healing is going on, I’d really like to see some kind of crisis center or some other way to combat this crisis come to Wilmore.”
Most of the members of Wilmore’s City Council have served anywhere from five to twenty years. If elected Nov. 3, Gillespie would be the youngest council member.