Marcos “Marc” Ramirez says he will run for mayor of Cornelius this fall. There’s plenty of time between now and the filing deadline in July, but Ramirez is going public early.

Town Commissioner Woody Washam, who also is Mayor Pro Tem because he was the highest vote-getter in the 2015 non-partisan, town board election, announced that he was running back in December.

There’s no word from Mayor Chuck Travis about whether he will run again, but Travis ally Commissioner Jim Duke says he is “pleased to support Woody in his run for Mayor of Cornelius.”

Ramirez, 40, a registered independent who did not vote in the 2015 election, lives with his family on Coachman’s Trace, just off Washam Potts Road. He is currently laid off as a contractor who inspects nuclear power plants. He does not have prior political experience or service on town boards.

“I am running for mayor because in politics today they have forgotten the biggest part that makes a constitutional republic what it is. A people elected to represent and protect the community of its districts, by the people for the people and of the people. Those three are the most powerful part of community leadership, and it’s lost in today’s political theater,” he says.

The top issue in Cornelius “is a massive divide between people and politics,” he says. “We cannot get every single opinion on every topic in a town of 30,000 people. There are topics which we need to get as many as feasible, and then some that the people trust you to do what’s right without them. A few commissioners are trying, having like dinner dates to talk or lunches. I’m talking about being in the people. When something is going to effect a neighborhood, the committee, or mayor, or commissioners have got to be knocking on doors, going to local places and introducing themselves, doing more to hear the people.”

Ramirez, a regular commentator on Facebook, says he is not running against Washam. “I believe we both want to better our little town, and I have respect for him. What I am doing is running for the people and to fight for our town to be getting the respect it deserves,” he says.

His complete comments are here:

Registered as a…?

I am registered as an Independent as I don’t feel either party is 100 percent in touch with the needs of the people and conversely both have some decent points.

Did you vote in 2015?

I did not vote in 2015. I was very focused on my job and studying to get promotions and didn’t give the local politics enough of my time to feel just in helping determine who stays or goes.

Address?

I live on Coachmans trace in Cornelius just off Washam Potts.

Family (wife, kids)?

Yes I have a wife of 8 years, we are celebrating 10 years as a couple on her birthday this year. That’s how we met. I have two amazing step children. The young man graduates from Hough this spring, and one ornery amazing girl in 7th.  I have no children of my own.

Job?

Job is complicated. I am a contractor for inspection of nuclear power plants and currently laid off. Because of current administration policies Nuclear is becoming hard to live off of because power companies are cutting nuclear cost at any means. Its called the Nuclear Promise. So I’m not sure about plans to return when inspection season starts up again. I am also currently looking at a few businesses in the area to maybe purchase and get out of inspections completely. I have also considered starting a business to inspect peoples homes under construction for the home owners so they could have the houses watched for piece of mind and not have to feel like they need to go there daily to watch dog.

Education?

I was homeschooled from 6th grade on, for reasons that would take a full page but would only be an issue if I was running for governor. People like to put down homeschooling but the greatest aspect of it is that like our schools of old, you aren’t reliant on a teacher. You learn how to learn. It doesn’t matter what the subject, you don’t require a teacher. Only the tools of the teacher and people around you who do know it. Mentorship I believe is an invaluable asset, at least accountability. Someone you can talk to when you feel. I did not choose “higher” education as I never found that one thing worth the debt. However if I ever needed college, and I knew I would use it, I would certainly go.

I was a volunteer fire fighter but I don’t prefer to use it as a platform. The disingenuous feel of using anything I have done for honor as apposed to the needs of the people is unfair to them.

Any volunteer experience or boards?

No response

Have you formed a committee?

No Committees.

Your top 2-3 issues?

Top issue sums up all issues. There is a massive divide between people and politics. I will try to stay short, however this is big to me and I may run over. When a person runs for government the status quo is “ I I I I I  ME ME ME ME, if you agree and like me vote for me and I will do what I want and you will like it because you agree with me”. For instance. The big one right now is I77. I hate tolls. So you elect an anti Toll politician, right? The problem all of this is when you have an issue pop up like a light at an intersection (wink wink). Where are those anti toll leaders at? Where’s the screaming from hills that our streets are ugly because of this intersection? See that’s a huge problem in politics. You vote for one thing but you never saw this issue coming so now what? This power grab in Raleigh. I have heard hundreds of times that they are doing what the people want. Are they? Did you ever hear at the bar some saying, “man I wish they would take the power from the governor and give it to the senate”? No. They say that because they were elected, meaning the people agree with THEM. So they do as they shall with impunity under the presumption that everything they do is right because they were elected. Until election time.

My stance is this. We cannot get every single opinion on every topic in a town of 30,000 people. There are topics which we need to get as many as feasible, and then some that the people trust you to do what’s right without them. A few commissioners are trying, having like dinner dates to talk or lunches. I’m talking about being in the people. When something is going to effect a neighborhood, the committee, or mayor, or commissioners have got to be knocking on doors, going to local places and introducing themselves, doing more to hear the people. Like can town hall tell us how the people in alexander chase and the apartments across from it feel about the northcross extension to Liverpool cutting through the neighborhood, potentially bringing into the neighborhood Catawba/ 21 avoidance traffic? The situation with Mr. Houser selling his property. That is government Tyranny.

The people don’t need a voice, they need their voice heard, and then acted on.

This town has been a one way bridge to the rest of the state.  We provide taxes in bushels, we now provide a beach, we are gateway between charlotte and the north. And what have we gotten in return? You have to build relationships yes, but when the relationship is one way you have to stand up and fight for what’s right. I don’t see a lot of fight in this town hall, just elbow rubbing, and niceties. We need to bridge the gap between the town hall and the people, and then they have to know we are on their side by fighting for our town. Using negotiation, and being strong in conviction of the value of our town.

I think the Mayor should be using the local papers, social media, radio whatever to post an editorial like once a month. Open up to the people. Maybe you cant make it to a town hall meeting, well here’s what the town is looking at.  Give them a chance to care and speak. I think once you have a bond with the people, all other issues become solvable. I don’t have every answer to every problem. But someone has an answer to something. So together we can pull it off. Around here is seems if you aren’t in the click, or you don’t go to events, you will never even meet the town politicians.