BETTENDORF, IOWA (November 2, 2023) — The Quad Cities Chamber endorses candidates who have demonstrated a desire to support a business-friendly climate or a commitment to the business community as evident in their candidate questionnaires or body of work. The Chamber announced its list of endorsed candidates for elections for mayor and city council in Davenport and Bettendorf.
“Local government is where our elected leaders make the biggest difference in our personal lives, and the lives of local business owners. For this reason, we've gone through a robust process to identify candidates we feel are prepared to meet the needs of businesses throughout our region,” said Quad Cities Chamber CEO LaDrina Wilson.
The Quad Cities Chamber engaged in a robust process before coming to a decision on each race. This endorsement is supported by the input of the Chamber's Business Advocacy Council (BAC) in coordination with the Chamber's leadership team through the evaluation of candidate questionnaires and their body of work. Candidates were asked to return a questionnaire, which was then graded anonymously. The BAC analyzed each race and candidate before finalizing the slate of endorsed candidates.
The Business Advocacy Council is an action team which assists the Chamber’s Government Affairs staff in understanding and communicating the interests of business members. It focuses on local, state, and federal issues which affect regional business in the Quad Cities. The BAC consists of representatives from small business, industry, and locally-owned companies of all sizes, reflecting the diversity of the Chamber membership. The BAC is the main conduit through which the Chamber activates its membership on policy issues and will be the day-to-day operational group focused on advancing Chamber policy priorities.
Candidates who did not respond to the survey were not eligible for endorsement. The exception to this is if candidates were incumbents, the BAC had the opportunity to waive the questionnaire requirement.
The following candidates received the Quad Cities Chamber’s endorsement:
Davenport
- Mayor: Mike Matson
- Third Ward: Marion Meginnis
- Sixth Ward: Ben Jobgen
- Seventh Ward: The Chamber has chosen not to endorse as both candidates are small business owners and show potential
- At-Large: Kyle Gripp, Jazmin Newton
Bettendorf
- Mayor: Bob Gallagher
- First Ward: Jerry Sechser
- Third Ward: Gregory Jager
- Fifth Ward: Nick Palczynski
- At-Large: Frank Baden
This endorsement comes exclusively from the Quad Cities Chamber and does not represent the position of any of its affiliated entities, which expressly do not provide endorsements. The Chamber Board of Directors supports this endorsement at the direction of the BAC with the following abstentions noted: City of Davenport City Administrator, City of Bettendorf Administrator, Scott County Administrator, City of Rock Island City Manager, City of Moline City Administrator and the Rock Island County Administrator. Additionally, Board Members who have abstained from the process are Jazmin Newton due to her current candidacy and Alvaro Macias as a current alderperson for the City of Moline.
