Election Day Information
Election day: November 5
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To find out more about Mark Huizenga
Mark Huizenga will move from City Commissioner to Mayor /Courtesy of Mark Huizenga
In Walker on November 5, citizens will vote on a new mayor. There will be two names appearing on the the ballot: Mark Huizenga and Barbara Holt. Holt is the current mayor who was appointed after previous Mayor Rob Verheulen won a seat in the State House. After dealing with some personal health concerns, she suspended her campaign and endorsed her opponent Mark Huizenga.
Huizenga has been part of the Planning Commission in Walker since 2005. As a small business owner, he hopes to bring some expertise in encouraging business in the area.
"We've got a lot of land for development and there's a lot of really great companies that are doing well in Walker but I think that we could do more," says Huizenga. "The businesses help keep our taxes low for the citizens. We've got so many great things going on and I'd like to continue that."
Huizenga would like to focus most on transparency and communication. He believes it is necessary for citizens to understand what is being done in their community.
"I'd like to see us do more with communication. Make sure that we're able to meet the needs of the population," says Huizenga. "This includes a broad range of people that might want to learn about things either from Facebook or Twitter. Maybe we could even think about posting our commission meetings on Youtube."
This communication may include posting more budget information online and letting citizens know upcoming plans on repairing roads.
"When I was out campaigning in August, citizens told me the city government needs to fix these roads that are in terrible shape," says Huizenga. "I as able to tell them that in the next two weeks, the concrete is going to be fixed and they're going to be resurfaced. The people living there didn't know about it."
Huizenga has always been interested in politics and was involved in high school and college. He enjoys the ability to affect local issues and put his analytic mind to use.
"I have a lot of experience in small and larger businesses and I hope to take those principles and mold that into the government and community. I think a lot of people think of the government as just a bureaucracy and there's no chance to change your city," says Huizenga. "Since I've been on the commission, I feel I've affected it as the commission has done a good job at having a business perspective now."
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