Ready, set, go

A pack of 20 candidates is running in the race for two associate commissioner seats in Cape Girardeau County. They appear already to have set a record for sheer numbers.

Rodney Miller, longtime Cape Girardeau county clerk, can't ever remember such a big field.

The question is, why?

The commissioners' $55,000 salary undoubtedly is a strong incentive. The salary sounds all the better considering that commissioners formally meet only two mornings a week.

Members of the commission say that doesn't come close to accounting for all the hours they spend attending meetings outside the courthouse, including in the state capital, tending to problems in the county and taking calls at home from the people they represent. They say it's anything but a part-time job.

Indeed, they have a lot of responsibility. They manage a county government with a $10 million operating budget. Men and women with management abilities and common sense are needed to fill these two seats.

Recent commission issues may be another reason for the free-for-all, including the decision not to build a new juvenile facility and a dispute with Jackson over nearly half a million dollars in road and bridge taxes Jackson claims it should have received. The city has filed suit against the county in an attempt to reclaim that money.

The commission also has been criticized for the informal approach it takes to meetings, rarely sticking to agendas, and its policy of approving every county expenditure of $150 or more.

Second District Commissioner Larry Bock is running for another term. First District Commissioner Joe Gambill did not file for re-election.

Four former law enforcement officers, one woman and two Democrats did file for a commissioner's seat.

This will be a campaign in which you can't tell who the candidates are without a scorecard. Attempting to set themselves apart from the field will be an important tactic in this year's contest.