The mayor of East Moline wants employees of the Rock Island Arsenal to be able to run for local government. Tonight, the city council will consider switching to non-partisan elections, which would allow federal employees to run for office.
Mayor John Thodos says East Moline is the only city in the Quad Cities that still holds partisan elections. And, that excludes a lot of potential candidates.
And, he's been researching how other cities have made the switch to non-partisan elections.
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Thodos says holding non-partisan elections would save Rock Island County the costs of holding a primary, and would give residents more options at the polls.
If it's approved by the city council tonight, a referendum will be held next April, to let voters decide if East Moline should hold non-partisan elections.