Waddle wins 6 to 1 in DeSoto’s mayoral race

by Daphne Brown of DeSoto TODAY

Winning a seat on the DeSoto City Council caps off an amazing year for Denise Valentine.

Successfully mounting a first-time campaign for city government, Valentine said she feels ready to serve.

“This is about equivalent to excitement I felt when DeSoto was named an All-America City and the Citizen of the Year recognition,” said Valentine, who was named the DeSoto Chamber of Commerce's 2007 Citizen of the Year. “I am very thankful to all the people who voted and the countless number of people who helped me win.”

Valentine said her campaign took a lot of work, “and their work translates into support.”

“I feel like I need that same support as I go to work as a new council member,” she said.

Her work on the Planning and Zoning Commission and the orientation period provided by the city of DeSoto, she said, will be helpful in making the transition.

Valentine began serving the city when she was asked to kick-start DeSoto Dining and Dialogue, in which people from diverse ethnic, education and economic levels discuss their differences and ways to overcome them once a quarter over dinner in people's homes and restaurants throughout the city. DeSoto Dining and Dialogue was among the programs that cinched the 2006 National League of Cities All-America City distinction for DeSoto. When elected to the council, Valentine also was a member of the city's Planning and Zoning Board, having filled an unexpired term and then being named to a full, three-year term.

“This feels like more responsibility because elected is different than being appointed,” she said.

Respess said he was working to remove his campaign signs and looking forward to his first meeting as a city councilman.

“A good bit of this will be learning on the job,” Respess said. “I'm looking at this as I'm the new kid on the block.”

Respess said he and his team campaigned hard despite his opponent being the lesser known name.

“I certainly didn't look at this win as a sure thing,” he said. “When I announced my candidacy, others had picked up packets but no one else had any moves. So for a brief moment, it looked as though there would be no opposition.”

Respess, who has lived in DeSoto since 1989, said if there had been a candidate he could have supported, he would have refrained from filing, but there was enough support and encouragement from community leaders that he said he decided to campaign.

“I had never been approached to run in previous years, and with my involvement in other city activities, people probably felt comfortable in supporting me,” he said.

Mayor-elect Bobby Waddle said he had not had much chance to rest since election day.

“It's behind us; we did a lot of campaigning,” Waddle said. “We worked it hard, and I think you see that in the results. But to me, if you're going to campaign, that's the only way to be in my book.”

Being elected mayor in the city he grew up in is special, Waddle said.

“DeSoto is where I grew up, it's where I was raised,” he said. “I feel very honored to have started here because DeSoto has meant a lot to me over the years. My heart is here and that's what it's about for me.”

He said he wants to help DeSoto continue to enhance its assets, including building on the All-America City distinction.

I know it's going to be a lot of hard work, but as you know, I don't run from hard work,” Waddle said.

Among his short list of projects, he said are the Hampton Road Redevelopment project, which the council took steps to partner with the DeSoto Economic Development Board at the May 15 city council meeting, preserving Nance Farm as a historical site for the city and encouraging businesses to consider relocating their headquarters to the Industrial Park.

“It's going to be a personal effort of mine in working with those things the city currently has in place to get DeSoto to the next level,” Waddle said.

During campaigning, Waddle said he watched the vast number of people utilizing the civic center, whether for the library, the banquet rooms or the weight room and gymnasium facilities.

“It's amazing how many people you get coming to the civic center. There's a lot of traffic. It lends itself to some of the neat things we have planned for its development,” he said.

He said Valentine and Respess are valuable assets to the city.

“They're not new to the city so they just don't walk in and have to pick up something they've rarely been around before,” he said. “They are going to make great additions to the city council.”