GREELEY — Fears over crime and gang violence – and a supposed laid-back approach to illegal immigration – doomed Tom Selders in his bid to reclaim the mayor’s seat.
That’s the claim of residents and a critic of Selders’ final two-year term. Selders lost to former police officer Ed Clark – a one-time member of the city’s gang unit – by a wide margin Tuesday, 61 percent to 39 percent.
The campaign was marked by controversy, including attacks on Selders for his visit in May to Washington, D.C., to decry the impact of immigration raids at Greeley’s Swift & Co meatpacking plant.
Selders never fully explained that immigration enforcement is a federal issue and as mayor he could do little about the raids, said Steve Mazurana, political science professor at the University of Northern Colorado. “Meanwhile, the impression grew that Greeley believed it was a good thing illegal workers were here,” Mazurana said.
Selders, who during the campaign said he was against illegal immigration, couldn’t be reached for comment Wednesday.
Fliers from outside interest groups also may have hurt Selders’ campaign, including one with apparent gang members flashing gang signs and with a caption that read, “Tom Selders Is Good for Business.”
“Negative ads still do work, especially for people who don’t have the time or the interest to review the facts,” Mazurana said.
Clark, meanwhile, promised to put at least 20 officers on Greeley’s streets to fight gang violence. This resonated with members of Alliance for a Better Greeley, which said Selders was soft on crime.
“I don’t know if we swayed people to vote one way or another, but we got more people to talk about the gang issue,” said the group’s spokesman, John Hagen.
He said the group will monitor Clark’s work on crime prevention.
“If things don’t change for the better,” Hagen said, “expect the same things that happened during this campaign to happen (if Clark runs for re-election).”
Monte Whaley: 720-929-0907 or mwhaley@denverpost.com
