As a 40-plus-year, year-around resident and a 40-year private business owner in the Kenai Peninsula Borough, I will be supporting Mike Navarre for Borough Mayor. Mike is a proven businessman who has supported his community and many non-profit organizations with both his time and resources. He has quietly, without fanfare, surrounded himself with highly qualified staff members that have done a great job of operating our Borough.

Tom Bearup has displayed a trail of troublesome ethical and financial dealings that beg for further explanation. Despite filing for bankruptcy relatively recently, he touts his ability to fiscally manage a business as large as the Kenai Peninsula Borough. I have reviewed his answers to candidate questions and nearly all involve spending more taxpayer funds or lowering revenues. I am not comfortable with a candidate that cannot display any positive accomplishments of his own, but rather bases his candidacy on misleading criticism of his opponents.

My support will go to a proven leader, Mike Navarre.