I had the honor of representing MemphisConnect.com at Mayor AC Wharton’s Election Night Party – representing our city’s growing new media outlet. So in between tweeting, Facebooking, documenting, and talking with fellow citizens on site, I worked to settled on some key questions for the Mayor Elect; questions from the people. Little did I know that within minutes of his acceptance speech, Mayor Elect AC Wharton and I would sit down for a 10 minute exchange Here is the result.

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The headlines read today something along the line of A C Wharton first new Memphis mayor-elect in nearly 2 decades (WMC-TV). That is “only the beginning” as Mayor Elect AC Wharton quickly relayed to me.  Memphis is a city with many opportunities/challenges, and Mayor Wharton isn’t walking into the position with blinders or an aversion to make needed changes in city government.

When I asked, “What does risk mean to you and is it OK to fail?” our soon to be mayor didn’t hesitate.

“We need to set lofty goals and bet on people.” Continuing Mayor Wharton talked about the bringing the Books from Birth program to Memphis – the last county in the State to adopt the program. “There were many skeptics, but I knew it was a chance or bet that was worth taking.”

Knowing the role tourism plays in our economy, the Mayor got specific on a risk he would like to take early on: “building a new convention center” to keep Memphis ahead of the curve of other cities in the country.

(Thanks to Cardell Orrin for prompting this question.)

When I asked, “What does government transparency mean to you and how will that be manifest in your administration?”

Mayor Wharton instinctively knew that I was talking about creating access in new and unique ways. YouTube? “Yes.” Twitter? “Yes.” Direct emails to Citizens? “Yes.” And beyond? “I’d say so.” The Mayor even acknowledged that updating the city’s website to embrace the new modes of web communication was likely in order.

Going further the Mayor provided an example of what transparency means. Using a method he already employees as Shelby County Mayor (which I was not aware of), Mayor Wharton intends for his schedule to be freely available and he expects the same of his cabinet and those below them.

“A lot of people think transparency is about data and paper, inputs and outputs, but I want to be transparent to the next degree. In city government, processes need to be equally transparent so the citizens our city come to understand the decision making process that will occur and hence how outcomes come to be.” In others words the Mayor said, “We can go much further than opening up locked away records.”

(Thanks to Aaron Shafer and Elizabeth Lemmonds for reaching out to me with this area of questions.)

Finally, I asked, “What does the future cabinet look like in your mind given that there are next generation leaders waiting to take some of the leadership reins to support positive change in our city?”

This sparked one of the more interesting analogies I have heard in a long time, prompting some chuckles between us. “Some folks are like donut tires, good for slow steady speeds or for short distances. There is a role for them in certain scenarios.” Continuing, he said, “But we need to have a brand new set of tires in city government.”

Getting specific the Mayor stated his transition team will be fully representative of all forms of diversity “including age” and he fully expects that this will translate into the cabinet. Highlighting one office where a next generation leader has a competitive advantage, Mayor Wharton said “in Talent and Human Capital.”

(Thanks to Kevin Ritz for inspiring this line of questioning.)

After my three questions, Commercial Appeal reporter Daniel Connolly, had a chance to ask questions of the Mayor Elect and I had the opportunity to listen. Mayor Wharton relayed that we should “expect an orderly and no drama transition of administrations. The locksmiths aren’t showing tomorrow with the moving vans.”

In the same breath though, Mayor Wharton relayed that the hard work starts today. Regardless of how you voted, I think we can all agree with that!

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Thank you to Mayor AC Wharton’s Campaign for granting this outlet, MemphisConnect.com, unprecedented access on this historic occasion.  As I stated, I sat side-by-side with the Commercial Appeal’s Daniel Connolly and had the same opportunity to ask questions that citizens wanted to hear about. The 15 minutes that Daniel and I had flew by fast, but really showed how the role of new media has changed how governments should (or rather need) to operate to effectively connect with the citizens.

I think it was probably more newsworthy than most would initially realize.  This act alone marks a new era for Memphis and hopefully a sign of things to come in politics and city government.

Full disclosure: I’m not a reporter by trade or training.  This work represents my best effort to ask questions and get answers for my fellow citizens. I did my best to be objective with open ended questions and a pad of paper.  Meanwhile, Daniel (a report I’ve known for a while now) had the voice recorder and laptop rolling (I’ll know better next time, Daniel; thanks for your patience). Regardless of how well I did, it is my hope that this blog post demonstrates how access and unique citizen questions can combine to create new and productive forms of engagement with civic leaders.

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