Campaign Announcement

My fellow Eastonians, family, friends and colleagues: For the past 7 years, I have faithfully served this great community as your at-large council person, initially chairing the public safety committee, serving two years as vice-mayor, and currently serving as chair of the administration committee.  Alongside you, I continue to witness the positive transformation of our city.  Easton’s prosperity continues with a vibrant restaurant scene, entertainment venues, and increasingly diverse neighborhoods.  We have seen our population grow to more than 28,000 residents, a clear indication that we, as a community, are doing something right.  Our city continues to attract new businesses and residents, indicating that our future remains bright. I am here, before you today, to formally announce my candidacy to be your next mayor.  You might be thinking to yourself, why me, why now.  The answers to your questions are simple.  Easton needs change and the time to change is now.  Although we have made great strides over the last decade, our city has seen monumental growth with unprecedented development, especially in our downtown area.  If new leadership is ever needed to help guide us through our future, the time is now for someone else to take the reins and continue steering us in the right direction.  Delivering on neighborhood unity, government openness and financial transparency are the pillars of my platform.  Advocating for inclusivity and not exclusivity throughout our city is indicative of a leader who understands all walks of life are welcome in our community, regardless of income.

You may or may not know this but I have been an outlier in my seven years serving as a councilperson, only missing one meeting in January of 2021, regularly challenging the status quo, seeking accountability, advocating for sound fiscal policy, and promoting transparency.

I believe that our government must be open and truthful to its residents.  My experience as a municipal consultant finds that a transparent government is best suited to navigate through difficult operational conditions and solving complex financial issues.

One of my passions is technology.  A strong desire is to bring residents together through the use of technology and increase citizen engagement.  I will focus on improving our use of data to assist residents in offering more streamlined services and increasing efficiency.

We will better track growth, spending, and publicize other important facts and figures to keep everyone informed.  This is an important feature in improving government transparency and your trust.  Clear and accessible information will allow you to see what is happening within your local government and with its officials.  Holding us accountable is a significant feature of a well-functioning democracy and a confident mayor.

Before I end this message, I would also like to mention that our current form of government is flawed.  Having the elected mayor with the title of chief executive and sitting on council as president with a vote on legislation is not effective.  Through a cooperative relationship with fellow members of council, my priorities will be to enact term limits and remove the Mayor from council.  Government succeeds with leaders who bring fresh and new ideas to the table and although the idea of separating the executive from the legislative branch may seem unimportant to you, it clearly defines roles and responsibilities within the city.  Term limits allow for a successful transition of leadership who may have differing ideas on how to govern which in a democracy is welcomed by citizens.


In conclusion, I am asking for your support in the May primary to be your next Mayor in the City of Easton.  There is hope that with a newly elected leader, we can help bring civility back to our city with real-world experience and offer creative ideas in hope of resolving many of the financial and operational issues we will likely face in the years to come.  My campaign will be transparent with updates on my personal website regarding spending as well as other ideas on improving the city with policies and new ideas.  I believe in our democracy, where elected leaders are able to debate matters with respect to each other, without harboring misgivings from years past on disagreements ranging from independent thought to differing opinions on legislation.

In the coming weeks, there will be several additional videos published to my website.  Topics such as budgeting, finance, government transparency, and parking, will allow you to listen in on additional concerns our city faces along with the solutions I intend to recommend.  More importantly, my character will be openly discussed as well as a discussion of my votes so everyone has the opportunity to understand who I am and why I sometimes vote against the majority.

Finally, as I end my message, please visit my website at www.petermelan.com.  There you will be able to join our team to offer your support and provide me with a platform to hear your concerns.  I will make a promise that an important goal is to engage with any and all constituents, business owners, and important stakeholders who would like to offer suggestions or discuss any issue you feel is important for me to hear.  I want to listen to each of you on how we all can make Easton an even better place to start your business or raise a family.  Thank you for listening to my message today and I look forward to meeting each of you as often as possible and gaining your support in the upcoming mayoral election.

-Peter Melan