By james art 
St. Paul voters on Tuesday are set to vote on two very different issues: a child care subsidy for low-income families paid for through property taxes and a proposal to move city elections to even-numbered years.
Supporters of the plans say each is needed to ensure more pavlicians can fully participate in civic life. They argue that the even-year election proposal would increase voter turnout and the child care subsidy would allow more low-income families to fully join the workforce or improve their education.
Peter Butler has been promoting the election year change for years, saying odd-year voting in the city has resulted in only about a third of St. Paul voters going to the polls. More than 80% went out regularly during the presidential years.
“I certainly think higher voter turnout is the gold standard for elections,” Butler said recently.
But City Council President Mitra Jalali, who gathered with a group of local and state leaders who opposed the plan Friday, said city issues will be lost in the noise of national and state races. And City Council candidates running under the city’s electoral system will be dropped from the full ballots, she said.
Jalali’s group, which included state Reps. Maria Issa Perez-Vega and Liz Lee, both St. Paul DFLers, also called for a no vote on the child care proposal as well. Mayor Melvin Carter also recently called for a no vote. Carter also said the child care proposal would only help a few hundred families a year.
“The residents of Minnesota and St. Paul deserve real solutions to the child care crisis that build on the historic work being done in the Legislature, not the diversion of valuable public funds to private companies in a lottery system with no accountability,” Perez said – Vega.
But Council Member Rebecca Knocker, one of several City Council members who support the child care proposal, said the help could make a real difference for some of St. Paul’s neediest families.