On her personal Facebook page, former Ashland City Councilor and current Oregon District 5 State Representative Pam Marsh recenty provided her endorsements for the November 2022 election, from top of the ticket down.
“I am sometimes asked during an election season who I’m supporting for various positions. While I don’t overestimate the importance of my endorsement, I take the process quite seriously. If I’m putting my name on a candidate, I want to be sure I understand their priorities and qualifications. That said, here are my endorsements.”
For Ashland City Council: Bob Kaplan
“We are fortunate to have well-qualified candidates running for all Council seats. As your representative in Salem, I expect to work closely with our City staff and elected officials to address municipal issues at the state level. For that reason, I haven’t endorsed candidates for City offices. My fundamental commitment is to the City, not to individual officers. But, because he brings an extraordinary skill set to our community, I made an exception for Bob Kaplan.
“I met Bob a couple of years ago, and we began working together on our shared passions, including homelessness and affordable housing, equity and climate change. He struck me as someone uncommonly prepared for local government, with a background in public policy and finance, great communication skills, and an ability to objectively assess issues and propose pathways.
“Bob has served on Ashland’s Citizens Budget Committee; as a member of the Board of Directors for Options for Helping Residents of Ashland; as a volunteer for Unete, teaching Spanish language civics to help residents gain citizenship; on the city’s Housing Production Strategy Advisory Committee; and in other local volunteer positions.
“Early last winter, long before any other candidates had stepped forward, I learned that Bob might run for Council. I asked him lots of questions about his views on current Ashland issues. Over and over again his answers demonstrated deep knowledge about the problems facing our community, strong analytical skills, and independent thought.
“More than anything, Bob has a huge commitment to good governance built on collaboration, transparency and a desire to make Ashland work for everyone.
“At a time when our little town seems rocked by turmoil,
Bob’s calm leadership and ability to build bridges
will be of paramount importance.”
“I told Bob that he would have my personal support if he should decide to seek a Council seat. I was thrilled to sign on as a supporter when Bob told me early last spring that he was running. If he is elected, Bob Kaplan will bring an important perspective and unique personal qualities to our City government
Bob Kaplan for Ashland City Council 