http://ipraudio.interlochen.org/MackinacMayorRace.mp3
Something unusual is happening this spring on Mackinac Island: There's more than one candidate for mayor. It's the first race for the office in nearly 20 years.
It follows lots of rancor in the Straits over the future of ferry service to the state's most popular tourist destination.
A Firm Resolve
Mayor Margaret Doud, 68, is a fourth generation islander. She owns the Windemere Hotel, which has been in her family since 1904. Her father was mayor in 1939 and 1940, and she has been mayor of this tiny island for 36 years.
She's known for being tough, too tough some say. Ten years ago, when a man with multiple sclerosis wanted to use an electric tricycle to get around the island, Doud led the fight against him all the way to Michigan Supreme Court. The city lost and spent about $100,000 dollars on legal fees.
To this day, Doud stands by her position against any motorized vehicles on the island at all.
"That 's part of the charm of coming to Mackinac Island," she says. "When people step off the boat, they step back in time. Horse is king on the island and it will remain king."
Ferry Dispute
The same resolve was evident in recent months as she led the fight over ferry service to the island. In the fall, a company proposed an exclusive contract to serve the island which would have put Shepler's Mackinac Island Ferry out of business. Letters and e-mails flooded city hall. By November, the city had received 300 letters from 12 states and two countries criticizing the idea. The Bay View Yacht club, which runs the famous Mackinac Boat Race, threatened to boycott the island if only one ferry was allowed to operate.
Mayor Doud was criticized when she pounded her gavel during a boisterous city meeting and shouted, "This is not Mackinaw City! This is Mackinac Island!"
Doud has no apologies.
"I think Mackinac Island was very upset last fall when we were absolutely bombarded by people from Petoskey, Harbor Springs, Mackinaw City, coming over here and basically storming our meetings and saying to us how to run our affairs," she says. "When I said that, I meant it. This IS Mackinac Island and we will run Mackinac Island the way we want to run it. Period."
The ferry dispute is still in court and next month the Michigan Public Service Commission holds public hearings to look into the matter.
A Challenger
All the hubbub has brought out a challenger in the mayoral race, something that has not happened since 1992. Gabe Cowell is 33 years old. That means the incumbent was the mayor when he was born.
Cowell has never held political office before but he works for the city. He operates the composting facility, which is a big deal on the island because trash has to be shipped to the mainland. Everything that can be composted is, including large amounts of horse manure.
At a candidate forum last week, Gabe Cowell told the audience it's time for a change.
"We need some fresher eyes looking at the things going on on the island. And I think we'll get some younger people in there to see what we can do with this. That's the only reason I'm running," he says.
Cowell says he does not like the way the city handled the ferry controversy. He can't understand why the ferry companies and the city couldn't sit down and talk before the problem escalated.
"I think that they, not just the mayor but the city council, handled it improperly. It could have been handled a different way so it wouldn't have gone this far," he says.
There are 710 registered voters on Mackinac Island. But few people here were willing to speak on tape about the race.
As one woman put it, "We're all friendly up here and we want to keep it that way. "
But some residents who are voting against the mayor say they fear retaliation if they speak out publically. Loren Horn, a lifetime island resident, understands that fear.
"They're afraid because they'll come back at them. In one way or another they will," He says.
Horn is involved in a lawsuit with the city. He says he and his son are being denied the ability to sell souvenirs on the streets and in the parks.
City officials say nobody is allowed to do that, but Horn claims people do it all the time. He thinks the mayor and city council have a vendetta against him.
"If we were big money, me and my son, they would welcome us. They would wine us and dine us and give us the key to the city," he says.
Indeed, Doud has some powerful allies in the business community, among them the Musser Family which owns the Grand Hotel. Hotel President Dan Musser says they'll support the mayor.
"We've been doing so for years," he says. "We hope she prevails. It's basically a non-paying job. I know it takes a lot of her time. I respect her wholeheartedly."
Voters go to the polls on May 3rd.