Amir Omar for Richardson Mayor Youth Video Contest

The first out of the chute for the first mayoral campaign in over 50 years was Laura Maczka, where she seemed to be testing the waters with her toes in a tentative announcement that she was considering running for mayor.  Then Amir Omar rattled a few trees  (or cages) with his news release announcing he was running for mayor. Laura had little choice at that point. If she wanted to be a contender she had to announce that she was officially jumping into the race , with both feet into the mayor’s race. Somewhere in between, Amir stepped it up again with another mailer laying out part of his case  as a hands-on leader. Then a Christmas card mailer   came from Amir the day before yesterday and a Happy Holidays email  from Laura yesterday.

Then, last night, came another Merry Christmas email from Amir that once again seems to have taken things to a new level in Richardson politics.

The overriding themes were being thankful for the support of friends and the citizens and that he has provided principled and independent leadership over the past four years. Some people view his comments as beating a dead horse in the council meetings, and other view them as those of an inquisitive person trying to make sure he understands exactly what is going on.

There is a link that describes some of his actions over the past four years, and a little going back as far as high school.

The most interesting and novel item in the email is “Fun Holiday Project for Our Youth”. He is announcing the “Amir Omar for Richardson Mayor Youth Video Contest”  . His aim seems to be getting young people involved with making and posting videos that say why they want Amir to be the next Richardson mayor. This is another first in Richardson politics.

Some may be fairly cynical of this, even I might be. He seems to be building for the future, for himself likely, but he is also trying to get young people more involved in politics and paying attention. If he can get more people paying attention, then that is a good thing, even if it is to his benefit too.

Voter apathy is terrible here in Richardson, as it probably is elsewhere. That apathy allows city leaders to do whatever they wish, within certain limitations, without critical eyes watching them.

This is going to be an interesting race for the mayor’s seat. It appears to me that Amir is fully prepared and motivated. Laura seems to be lagging a bit by comparison. If she hopes to win, she really needs to step it up a few notches.