Aurora dodged a bullet in its last municipal election a couple of years ago. That’s when voters had had enough of the political fringe that had overtaken Aurora City Hall. The majority on the City Council at that time, armed with a “Democratic socialist” agenda and a lot of rhetoric, had been pursuing a range of issues that didn’t really matter — and ignoring the ones that did. So, voters put an end to it in November 2021, electing a new majority with new priorities.

With new faces aboard, the rebooted council got back to basics. In a city slammed by the statewide crime wave, the council focused anew on public safety. It also turned its attention to upgrading roads and other infrastructure; to fostering a better business climate, and to cleaning up the streets in areas awash with addicts and panhandlers and their camps.

The reconstituted council, led by Mayor Mike Coffman, passed laws requiring jail time for rampant auto theft and shoplifting, which have been plaguing the metro area. An initiative was started to cut red tape for small business. The new council even rolled up its sleeves to tend to one of the least sexy yet most essential duties of local government, as noted by a recent Gazette headline: “Aurora project to fix neighborhood roads makes progress, draws praise.”

It all amounts to a good start, and an important one, in getting Colorado’s No. 3 city back on track. And Aurora voters this fall have an opportunity to fortify that effort.

Voters will elect five members to the City Council on this fall’s mail ballot, and each race offers a stark choice. On one side are candidates who would embrace ongoing efforts to make City Hall work for the people. On the other side are candidates who would revert to the divisive politics of tilting at windmills while the city’s basic needs go unmet.

That is why The Gazette editorial board strongly recommends a vote for:

• Curtis Gardner, an incumbent, for reelection to his at-large council seat;

• Jono Scott for the other at-large seat on the fall ballot.

• Stephanie Hancock for the council’s Ward IV seat;

• Angela Lawson for Ward V;

• Francoise Bergan, the incumbent, for reelection to Ward VI;

All five understand that City Hall cannot solve the world’s problems on the backs of local taxpayers. What residents expect is for their local government to patch potholes, police the streets, sustain the local economy and respect neighborhoods.

That’s the meat-and-potatoes mission the council has returned to, at last, in the past two years — and the candidates we recommend on this fall’s ballot will see it through.

Each of them is a longtime resident deeply involved in, and committed to, Aurora. Gardner, who has lived nearly his entire life in Aurora and is raising a family in the city, brings his career expertise in management and finance to the council dais. Scott, a food bank director and 30-year Aurora resident, serves on the Aurora Budget Committee. Hancock, who is president of the Aurora Cultural Arts District, raised her family in the city’s Eastridge neighborhood. Lawson, a decades-long resident, previously served on the council as an at-large member. Bergan, a fierce advocate for neighborhoods, small business and schools, is a seasoned council veteran who has served on the panel since 2015.

All want to focus on the most pressing problems facing the city; all want to make City Hall work for the taxpaying public.

Vote for Gardner, Scott, Hancock, Lawson and Bergan for Aurora City Council.

“To forgive is to set a prisoner free and discover that the prisoner was you.” Lewis B. Smedes, American author, theologian