The Greater Madison Chamber of Commerce and Building Trades and Construction Council of South Central Wisconsin today announced their endorsement of people of color in every contested race for Madison Alder in the April 4 election.
The two groups announced their support for Arvina Martin, who is Native American, in her race against Bradley Campbell in the open District 11 seat; first-term District 14 incumbent Sheri Carter against challenger José Eladio Rea; District 10 incumbent Maurice Cheeks against challenger Steve Fitzsimmons; and District 1 Alder Barbara Harrington-McKinney as she faces challenger David Handowski.
“In contested races for Madison Common Council, the choice for business and labor alike is clear. To have the endorsement of both the Chamber and Building Trades demonstrates a candidate’s understanding of how economies work and how best to foster job growth in our region,” said Chamber President Zach Brandon. “It is important that we not let up on the economic momentum we are seeing in Greater Madison, and these candidates have the right experience, passion and commitment to help us continue to drive that momentum.”
Brandon said the endorsements are based on the candidates’ positions on economic issues, but the diversity of the endorsements is a positive.
“Certainly the front line decision for us is based on where the candidates stand on economic and business issues,” Brandon said. “But we are proud of the fact that we are in an endorsement position where the best people for these jobs also represent diversity and equity within our community.”
The Chamber and Council also endorsed District 8 incumbent Zach Wood in his run against John Terry. They also issued a number of endorsements of incumbents in uncontested races, including Alder Shiva Bidar in District 5. They did not endorse Samba Baldeh, who is running unopposed for reelection.
“We have a good relationship with Alder Baldeh,” Brandon said. “He certainly has the business and tech background that we’re excited about. We are continuing to build a relationship with him. We’ll take another look in a couple years. It’s not a negative. It’s more of a let’s see where we end up together.”
