Duluth's 4th District City Council race heated up Tuesday afternoon, as Tom Furman announced he will seek the seat now occupied by Howie Hanson. Meanwhile, the incumbent councilor said he won't seek another term. "I will not run for re-election next fall, exclusively due to growing business conflicts of interest," said Hanson in a written statement. "I have mostly enjoyed my three-plus years on the council, and I have learned a lot. A lot." Although he declined to elaborate further, Hanson, a web developer and blogger, has been known to repeatedly abstain from voting on resolutions and ordinances involving his clients. Furman, 48, is a consultant, activist and lobbyist, but this will be his first foray into local politics as a candidate. "The idea hit me when I was working for Bernie Sanders' campaign, and he had talked about getting more active locally," he said.
Furman and his family have called Duluth home for more than 11 years. He and his wife, Jodi, are the parents of three daughters, ages 8, 10 and 12. "I feel that Duluth has been great for me, and I want to give back to it. It's a wonderful community, and we need people who are going to take politics seriously and get the things done that need to be done," he said. Furman graduated from Western Illinois University with a master's degree in business administration. He served in the Navy as a nuclear machinist mate. Furman volunteers for Family Voices of Minnesota and graduated from the Partners in Policymaking Program. He also served on the boards of Arc Northland and Duluth Edison Charter Schools. Describing his motivation to represent Duluth, Furman said: "It's knowing that what we do now will affect people so far into the future. Seeing how important it is to think globally and act locally is such an important part of what we really need to do going forward, especially when I look at the regressive federal and state governments moving in, I think it's so important to really start knowing that our local government is going to be looking out for people. "No matter what goes down at the federal or state levels, we are going to be active locally, and we're going to start helping one another out, especially the people who are the most vulnerable, the seniors and the people who are struggling poverty-wise and the people who face health risks," he said. Furman said he will seek endorsements from the DFL party.Duluth's 4th District City Council race heated up Tuesday afternoon, as Tom Furman announced he will seek the seat now occupied by Howie Hanson. Meanwhile, the incumbent councilor said he won't seek another term."I will not run for re-election next fall, exclusively due to growing business conflicts of interest," said Hanson in a written statement. "I have mostly enjoyed my three-plus years on the council, and I have learned a lot. A lot."Although he declined to elaborate further, Hanson, a web developer and blogger, has been known to repeatedly abstain from voting on resolutions and ordinances involving his clients.Furman, 48, is a consultant, activist and lobbyist, but this will be his first foray into local politics as a candidate."The idea hit me when I was working for Bernie Sanders' campaign, and he had talked about getting more active locally," he said.
Furman and his family have called Duluth home for more than 11 years. He and his wife, Jodi, are the parents of three daughters, ages 8, 10 and 12."I feel that Duluth has been great for me, and I want to give back to it. It's a wonderful community, and we need people who are going to take politics seriously and get the things done that need to be done," he said.Furman graduated from Western Illinois University with a master's degree in business administration. He served in the Navy as a nuclear machinist mate. Furman volunteers for Family Voices of Minnesota and graduated from the Partners in Policymaking Program. He also served on the boards of Arc Northland and Duluth Edison Charter Schools.Describing his motivation to represent Duluth, Furman said: "It's knowing that what we do now will affect people so far into the future. Seeing how important it is to think globally and act locally is such an important part of what we really need to do going forward, especially when I look at the regressive federal and state governments moving in, I think it's so important to really start knowing that our local government is going to be looking out for people."No matter what goes down at the federal or state levels, we are going to be active locally, and we're going to start helping one another out, especially the people who are the most vulnerable, the seniors and the people who are struggling poverty-wise and the people who face health risks," he said.Furman said he will seek endorsements from the DFL party.
