SALEM, Ill.---While we didn't do a review of what's going on in the election as regards mayor in the city of Salem for this issue, we thought we'd remind you that back in January, when we did a preliminary focus of those who'd picked up petitions, we ran the article about the mayoral candidate there who's making waves.
Here's an excerpt of the article covering who could be the next mayor of Salem, Sarah Boyles, Comedienne seeks office of mayor in Salem:
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In an election that seems to be reflecting the frustration most of the country is experiencing, the April 7 Consolidated is turning out to be one seeing a lot of firsts.
And in the Marion County city of Salem, they’ve got exactly that.
There, a woman who very nearly kicked off her campaign as a joke is suddenly being taken very seriously...and for a comedienne, that may or may not be a good thing.
The lovely Sarah Boyles, age 34, who first came to Disclosure’s attention over some hilarious and region-appropriate YouTube videos, is now an official candidate for mayor in Salem, and is officially the first comedian, male or female, to appear on a ballot and campaign for mayor in the state of Illinois.
Boyles is a Kinmundy native who has resided in Salem now for 15 years. She is a delightfully talented comedienne, with an ascerbic wit and a sharp perception of what is going on in downstate Illinois...and the combination of the two have provided her with material to produce podcasts and videos that hit home with listeners and viewers who know just what the score is in southern Illinois (which sometimes, unfortunately, is pretty low).
Several months back, perhaps as part of an ongoing theme, she began exploring in her ’casts the running for political office.
Because her fan base in southern Illinois is generally that of just a bunch of down home, good-ol-boy folks who “get” her homey sense of humor and truly appreciate it, the theme of “running for mayor,” appearing again and again in her routines, began to take root...and the fan base suddenly began encouraging Boyles to “DO IT!”
And do it she did. Boyles collected enough signatures on the petition, turned those signatures in, and will now be on the ballot in Salem in the open mayoral race against three other candidates: Mark Decker, Rex Barbee and Joe Hotze (Salem mayor John Raymer is not seeking reelection).
Boyles has been a writer and appeared on an episode of Xandermonium, a New York-based television show directed by Xander Gibb that bills itself as a “talk show that gets you talking!”
And while she may have a gift for such a thing as talking and entertaining, she realizes the seriousness of the role she may be taking on for Salem’s mayor...
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To read the rest, simply click the headline link above if you have an online membership to the e-Edition, or, if you don't, click this link here to get started. But if you prefer to read a print version, visit any one of our wonderful vendors throughout southern Illinois, where you can pick up the current issue, the Consolidated Election 2015 preview (March/April) on stands until one week post-election. Don't miss this one...you need to be informed...more posts to come!