Visiting voters, endorsements tipped scale for Svarzbein

Political newcomer Peter Svarzbein seemed to have benefited by the tried and true strategy of visiting voters and from receiving a key endorsement in his efforts to beat attorney Al Weisenberger in the El Paso City Council District 1 race.

Svarzbein beat Weisenberger on Saturday by 431 votes, a far different result than the May general election in which Svarzbein trailed Weisenberger by 261 votes.

“I knocked on doors every single day and made it a point to meet as many people as possible,” said Svarzbein in an interview Monday. The photographer and artist began knocking on doors in January, nearly two months before his runoff opponent announced he’d be running.

“The main thing that worked in this election was hard work. I’ve never seen anyone run that hard full time participation for six months,” said Rick Bonart, a local veterinarian and former consumer advocate Public Service Board member. Bonart came in third place in the May election and endorsed Svarzbein leading up to the runoff, even knocking on his supporters’ doors with Svarzbein.

“Dr. Bonart – my hats to him. He was really really great and gracious in helping out. His endorsement and the amount of participation leading to the runoff really made a big difference,” said Svarzbein.

The council seat is currently held by Ann Morgan Lilly who is termed out. She endorsed Weisenberger in a mailer before the runoff, a tactic that did not pay off. “A lot of people’s issues had to do with taxes. How they felt they weren’t being listened to in some ways,” said Svarzbein whose slogan was “A fresh perspective.”