Every member of our City Council lacked experience a short time ago. Riad Mahayni has sat on the council for a bit less than a year now and stumbled along the way as all newcomers do. Is this any reason to choose him instead of a man who grew up in our community and each day works to make it better? Aren’t ideas, innovation and respect for all more important?

Today, I’ve chosen to vote for a fellow student — Matt Denner — who has lived in Ames for most of his life and plans to stay here to make it better. Denner’s ideas are creating quit a stir in the community while his opponents are content to wait for someone else to make a change. However, I’m not willing to wait any longer to see someone work to cut the asthma rate in Ames, require our apartments to meet higher standards and kill the ridiculous ordinances that have treated students as a nuisance to the city.

I’m voting for Matt Denner, because he has the experience needed to sit on the city council as a long-time community activist, resident and student. More importantly, he has the ideas and the energy we need to see Ames become a better place to live, for students and for all of us.

Jon Mullin

Graduate Student

Biochemistry, Biophysics and Molecular Biology