Bob Steere for Council

Kelly Burk's campaign manager, Bob Steere, has put his hat in the ring for the seat on Town Council which Councilmember Burk is vacating to move up to the Board of Supervisors. (Full disclosure: I know Bob personally, as he and I worked together on Kelly's BoS campaign.) In the absence of a clear choice from among the previous Council candidates who did not win prior elections, Bob is a great choice for the Council. I base this recommendation on three things.

• The open seat is Kelly Burk's seat. As such, it makes sense to appoint someone who will generally align with the positions Councilmember Burk took while on the Board. The voters of Leesburg will be given the opportunity to decide whether those were the right positions in the 2008 Town elections. The Council should not substitute their judgment for that of the voters in advance of that election.


• Bob Steere is a committed and well-respected local advocate. He not only has been active in running Kelly's campaign, but also in his work for the Chamber of Commerce. Bob has a proven ability to work with all sides of the many issues in Town.


• Bob Steere is definitively not running in 2008. Bob will be a true caretaker of the seat for the citizens of Leesburg, carrying out the initiatives that Kelly started, but not presenting new complications and politics within the Council. As such, we will have a truly open seat available on the Council in 2008 for the voters to consider.

In the final analysis, Bob Steere is a concerned citizen, seeking to answer the call of local service when the Town needs a position filled. He is well-qualified, and interested without ambition. We would do well to have him serve out the remainder of Kelly's term.