Moreno gracious despite...

Via the Moline Dispatch:

"Mr. Moreno said he was surprised and dissapointed with the results and will not run for mayor again. "There is a time and place for everything and my time is now.", he said.
(I don't know if I'd have put it that way. "now" wasn't exactly kind to him.)

"I'm very proud of the seeds that we've planted that John (Thodos) will see those benefits," said Mr. Moreno, "I wish him well."

Thodos described his win as "somewhat monumental", and said he'd like all East Moliners to come together for the good of the city.

Via the Q.C. Times:

A disappointed Moreno, who served East Moline for 16 years on the city council, including the last four as mayor, said, “People are tired of the high taxes and the water fees. What they don’t realize, and this is what I should have brought forward, is that Mr. Thodos voted for tax increases on several occasions which resulted in higher fees.”
Moreno said he was unsuccessful in conveying his message. “It is an upset and the reason why is that we kept it clean and stayed with the issues and I just counted on the people to be as informed as possible. Obviously, I failed.”

Thodos said the contest became fierce at times.
“We tried to keep everything issue-related, and we have a lot of difficult issues ahead of us, but many of the problems we’re having now are the result of decisions the current administration has made.”

(no hatchet burying here. This battle lives on... )

He said he campaigned on prudent spending and economic development. “We have the Case plant that’s going to be torn down. We had four years to plan for it but there’s no plan.”

On the Moline race:

“I think that my message has resonated with the citizens of Moline, the message of holding the line on taxes, putting more money into our neighborhood and spreading economic development across the city,” O’Brien said. “I feel good because I think my message crosses party lines.”
“I didn’t try to play up to any one party, and that’s a little hard to do,” Welvaert said.
Andria McDermott will square off against Michael Carton in the race for O’Brien’s council seat. She received 37 percent of the vote and Carton collected 31 percent.
“I’m very good at planning and organizing and making money for our companies, so I’m assuming I can make money for the city,” McDermott said. Carton could not be reached for comment late Tuesday.
(Well, at least she's humble.)