The normally-routine process of qualifying candidates for local office in Rehoboth Beach creates some sparks, driven by a three-way race for two commission seats and the city’s most hotly-contested mayor’s race in decades.
A commission vote on each candidate’s qualifications, which are spelled out in the city’s charter, is one step on a candidate’s pathway to election day, following their filing to run and vetting by city staff to make sure the candidate meets the criteria set forth in the law. After those steps, the city’s Mayor and Commission also has to vote, essentially certifying that the candidate can run.
However, with three sitting commissioners and a political newcomer running to replace retiring Mayor Stan Mills, and two commissioners running for re-election to their seats facing a challenge from the husband of a current commissioner, the process wasn’t as straightforward as it has been in years past.
In years past, the process allowed for discussion of candidates’ qualifications among commissioners, as well as public input. But, following discussion of Suzanne Goode’s certification to run for mayor and pushback from her about recusing herself from a vote on her husband’s candidacy for commission, Commissioner Craig Thier suggested the process was flawed.
“To me, this is just a formality,” he said. “If the city has determined the candidate qualified, it is not for us to comment on any of those candidates - it is to simply vote yes on that candidate because the city has deemed them qualified.”
Thier also criticized the need for public comment on each candidate.
“The public will have the opportunity to comment on the individual candidates at the election,” he said.
City Solicitor Lisa Boren Ogden confirmed that Thier’s interpretation of the process was correct.
“There are objective criteria, you're correct,” she said. “This is a yes or a no, but this is a yes.”
Before discussions and a vote got underway, Boren Ogden and Mayor Stan Mills both cautioned commissioners to follow the city’s charter, and legal advice, closely. Both urged commissioners to recuse themselves from voting on their own qualifications. They also strongly encouraged Commissioner Suzanne Goode not only to recuse herself from voting on her own qualifications, but also those of her husband, Jeffrey Goode, who is running for commission.
Goode pushed back against that, and had sharp words for Boren Ogden, with whom she has sparred in the past.
“It's not an obligation [to recuse], it's voluntary, right? Like, we have this city solicitor who's unelected, running everything, and that has been a real problem for me for months and months and months, and I'm not going to let it happen today,” she said.
That measure banning spouses from serving together on the commission is part of a sweeping package in front of state lawmakers for consideration. Even if passed, it would not affect this year’s elections.
When the candidacy of Goode’s husband Jeffrey for commission came up, she initially seemed to signal that she would not recuse herself from a vote, leading to a testy exchange with Mills.
“As I said, I'm willing to recuse myself if Commissioners Gossett and Saunders likewise do so,” she began before being interrupted by Mills, who said, “You're not putting up an ultimatum. Yes or no? Are you going to recuse or not?”
Seeming to respond to a signal from someone in the public seating, Goode stood up and left the dais, recusing herself from the vote.
All four candidates for mayor and all three commission candidates were unanimously approved by the Mayor and Commission. Election Day in Rehoboth Beach is Saturday, August 8 from 10:00 am to 6:00 pm at the city’s convention center.
