On Friday and Saturday, registered voters in the 6th Ward received a letter from Lewis Reed, former 6th Ward alderman and current president of the Board of Aldermen. Reed urged their support of incumbent 6th Ward Alderman Kacie Starr Triplett, who faces a Democratic challenger in the March 8 municipal primary.
“No one is better suited for the position of 6th Ward Alderman than Kacie Starr Triplett,” Reed wrote, and then listed why.
“She has been aggressive about the police presence in our ward.”
“She took local slumlords to task by passing the St. Louis Vacant Buildings Initiative.”
“She created new programs to help assist small neighborhood business owners.”
Both Reed and Triplett are African-American, and her challenger is not. In the typically race-based strategies of St. Louis politics, that also might explain Reed’s support. But Reed is careful to note that he did not endorse Triplett when she ran successfully in 2007 (against two white opponents).
Reed notes specifically that his support of Triplett was “earned” by the experience “of working alongside her for almost four years.”
Though Reed does not mention Triplett’s youth – at 30, she is the youngest alderman in the city – it is implicit in his statement that “Kacie is a whirlwind of positive activity for our city.”
Indeed, Triplett is part of a local youth movement in black politics that also includes Alderman Antonio D. French, state Rep. Jamilah Nasheed, state Rep. Tishaura O. Jones, state Rep. Chris Carter, state Rep. Clem Smith and state Sen. Maria Chappelle-Nadal.
“We have some emergent young leaders who are very passionate about the future of the city and are willing to seek the counsel of our elders who laid the framework,” Triplett said.
“Especially a lot of the younger African Americans, we have a respect for those who come before us and rely on them for guidance and wisdom, yet we have a sense of independence and assertiveness to run for office, even without the support of the establishment.”
Her own political mentor, she said, is Pearlie Evans, a longtime political operator and former assistant to U.S. Rep. Wm. Lacy Clay.
However, Triplett also was quick to name-check a number of “white progressives who are blazing their own paths.” One of them, David Chilenski, is managing her reelection campaign.
“We are all able to work with whatever side – what’s good for St. Louis, that’s what we’re going to work on,” Triplett said.
Triplett pointed out a few progressive accomplishments from her first term that Reed did not cover in his letter.
“The 6th Ward was the first ward in the city to introduce environmentally friendly alleys – permeable alleys that collect rainwater and filter rainwater to sewer systems,” she said. It was an innovation she learned about during a trip to Chicago.
She also introduced a 6th Ward Refresh Your Business program to provide “forgivable loans” to businesses that had operated in the ward for 10 years or longer.
“We hear a lot about new businesses, but we need to protect the ones that have been here a long time, often when no other business was there,” Triplett said.
“So I started a program so owners could spruce up their buildings and make them attractive.”
Triplett is bringing the same “whirlwind of positive activity” to her reelection campaign.
It did not surprise her to be challenged in the Democratic primary (by Bradford J. Kessler, an attorney and visual artist) for her first reelection effort.
“I knew I had to be prepared for a reelection fight. Any time you are independent, young and female, you are always challenged, especially if you are trying to do things differently than they have been done before,” she said.
“I feel like a boxer – I have been training, conditioning, for this.”
The letter from Reed, she said, “kick-started the campaign,” to be followed up by a more formal public campaign opening rally 5:30-8 p.m. today (Thursday, Jan. 13) at Ozzie Smith’s Restaurant, 1511 Washington Ave.
“If you have funds and wish to donate, great, but more than anything this event is to show your support,” Triplett said.
She also encouraged volunteers to visit her campaign headquarters at 1218 S. Jefferson and to watch for updates on www.KacieStarrTriplett.com.
In other races
No other African-American official on the March 8 ballot has a Democratic challenger.
Reed is unopposed, though Maxine Johnson has filed as Green Party candidate for board president.
Fourth Ward Alderman Samuel L. Moore also is unopposed, though he faces a Green Party candidate in Crystal D. Washington. The same is true of 22nd Ward Alderman Jeffrey L. Boyd, who faces only Green Party candidate Donald E. Devivo.
Second Ward Alderman Dionne M. Flowers, 18th Ward Alderman Terry M. Kennedy and 26th Ward Alderman Frank A. Williamson are unopposed.Â
