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Andreas Spiliadis
Andreas Spiliadis was a candidate for District 3 of the Baltimore City Council. Spiliadis was defeated in the general election on November 8, 2016.
Campaign themes
2016
Spiliadis' campaign website listed the following themes for 2016:
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I have a new vision that breaks away from the current dependency on voter apathy. Apathy and money sustain the Democratic Downtown Development Complex which runs this city, and It is smothering and killing us. We need a new politics, and the Third is a great place to start. I have four major components of my platform. 1. Start with the soil- The closest thing to each of us is the ground on which we live and work. If you want to talk about roots of problems, you must look to the soil. The soil in Baltimore is toxic because vacant houses, big box development, and poorly designed roads are an acceptable economic solution for the current power structure. It doesn’t have to be this way; the soil can be how we can grow and develop as a healthy and economically prosperous city. We can create a development strategy that treats the soil of our city as a growing medium instead of as a piece of property. Starting with the soil and supporting local agriculture as a development strategy creates significant benefits over the current “big box” approach. A thriving local agriculture sector in the Third would create jobs, small (and smaller) businesses, healthy food, youth and senior engagement, education, and public safety. If Harford Road was filled with restaurants and markets selling “Grown In The 3rd” food, that would be pretty cool, and I think we can make that happen. Farming is a survival strategy and a development strategy for Baltimore and the Third is a great place to start. 2. Give the people and the communities more power- Baltimore is a City which has invested a lot of power in City Hall. That power has left us with a strong central government but has also left the politicians unaccountable to the people and communities they represent. When I worked for Mayor Schmoke in the early 90’s, his message about decentralization of decision-making powers really resonated with me. We need to empower community organizations to do much of the work that should be done on a community level, and leave the city to handle things that only the city can handle. I propose everything the city council has jurisdiction over be evaluated and audited, and when there is a working neighborhood based organization that can absorb responsibility, they be fully supported to do so. When there is not a functioning neighborhood group the city should help to cultivate this kind of local power. We need local institutions with the power to represent their people, and we need a city which truly focuses on the things only the city can do. 3. Localize the Economy- The city of Baltimore has lost control of our economy and has allowed corrupt banksters and downtown developers to take our money. Our money is making money for everyone but us and we need to seize control and return economic power to the people, communities, and businesses of our city. We need a local economy that is designed to benefit all of Baltimore. This means we need local control of capital so that the interest on any investment stays in the city and helps us to build critical infrastructure and support a local economy. We need to focus on city supported development of small and smaller businesses, so that participation in the economy is not dependent on the algorithms of global capital, and if we have “zero tolerance” for anything it should be youth unemployment. A localized economy also requires a local hiring requirement with teeth to stand up to developers, and ensure that we get the job training and vocational resources needed to provide good jobs to people here in Baltimore. A smaller but more local and more equitable economy is an absolute necessity if Baltimore hopes to survive; the inequality and corrupt economics we face are killing us and our city. It is time to think outside of the Big-Box. 4. End One-Party Rule In Baltimore City - Democrats have had single party rule in this city for nearly half a century. Single party rule has created an intergenerational political Impoverishment that cultivates voter apathy to protect bad governance and cronyism. This has created a reality in which most reasonable people believe there is no alternative than to vote Democrat, even though we know the party apparatus crushes even the most progressive Democrats. As long as the Democrat Downtown Development Complex runs the city, nothing that challenges it will be allowed to grow and flourish. There is no better example of this bankrupt and unethical governance than Robert Curran, the current occupant of the Third District City Council seat. The solution to this single party rule lies in voters. We the people can simply refuse to accept the truth that the Democratic machine has trained us to believe. When Democrats say “vote for me, I’m different from the rest”, we can say “no”. When reasonable people tell you that you must believe “There is no alternative to Democratic rule in Baltimore”, we can say Be More Radical. When gatekeepers tell you that you must realize that without the money of the Democrats you are “throwing your vote away”, we can say “I am part of the change.” I am part of the change and I ask you to join me. [1] |
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| —Andreas Spiliadis (2016), [2] | ||
Elections
2016
| Baltimore City Council Election (2016), District 3, General Election, 2016 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Democratic |  Ryan Dorsey |
85.78% | 14,190 | |
| Green | Andreas Spiliadis | 13.69% | 2,265 | |
| Write-in votes | 0.53% | 88 | ||
| Total Votes | 16,543 | |||
| Source: Maryland State Board of Elections, "Official 2016 Presidential General Election results for Baltimore City," accessed December 11, 2016 | ||||
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Andreas Spiliadis Baltimore. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
- Baltimore, Maryland
- Municipal elections in Baltimore, Maryland (2016)
- United States municipal elections, 2016
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Spilly for The Third District, "My Statement of Candidacy," November 30, 2015
- ↑ State of Maryland Board of Elections, "Baltimore City 2016 Presidential Primary Election Local Candidates List," accessed February 4, 2016
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