By Rachel Helgeson, Reporting Intern
Lydia Boerboom, a Minnesota native and political novice, became the youngest woman ever to serve on the Eau Claire County Board when she was sworn into office on Tuesday at the county courthouse.
She was one of eight newcomers who became members of the board at its first meeting since the April 3 electiion.
At just 21 years old, Boerboom won the District 16 seat 243-149 against David Mortimer, a 53-year-old incumbent who had served on the board the past two years.
“You did it, Lydia!”
On election night, Boerboom was invited to The Lakely, a downtown restaurant, where a viewing party with other candidates was taking place. Boerboom said she received a text message before arriving at the party that read, ‘You did it, Lydia!’.
“I couldn’t believe it,” Boerboom said, “It was just out of my mind, I wasn’t thinking (the text was) about the results.”
She had been occupied all day, she said, by giving students rides to the polls, ensuring people had the correct voter verification and directing them to correct locations.
“That whole day was the past four months combined into one day,” Boerboom said.
Nearly $1,400 was raised to support Boerboom’s campaign, although her budget was $1,600. Boerboom said she received the funds from donations either in person or online through CrowdPac, which is a crowdfunding webpage for politics.
Boerboom worked non-stop during her campaign with the help from friends, family members, community members, mentors and even a few students, she said.
“For months I spent every weekend and most weeknights knocking on neighbors ’ doors and getting to know the community a little better. That’s a lot of work. A lot of hours are put into that. You don’t sleep.”
Goal was to increase turnout
Boerboom said her goal during the campaign was to increase the number of voters, beyond the number who may typically turn out on election day. She said she was encouraged by the number of people who were informed of the election and thinks her campaign did a great job getting students out to vote .
“Students definitely were a part of it. One of the reasons I ran was to bring a more diverse perspective on the County Board, so I think other students saw that and respected that,” Boerboom said.
“It shocks me that this isn’t a pattern, where students are on County Board or on any local elected seat. I think it’s really important because we are such a big part of the town.”
Since her first off-campus experience as a freshman at UW-Eau Claire, where she was invited into the city to pick vegetables in a community garden, Boerboom has been keenly aware of the welcoming community in Eau Claire, she said.
For Boerboom, deciding to get involved with the County Board was an opportunity to “do more for the people who have done so much for me ,” she said.
Relationships, dialogue and quality of life
Boerboom said she wants to focus on the relationships within the community during her time on the board and to encourage a dialogue among groups about local issues.
“My overall goal for these next two years is to provide a really open channel of communication between voters and community members, citizens, neighbors, County Board and even School Board and City Council,” Boerboom said.
On her campaign website, Boerboom outlined a few other matters that she will be focusing on. These include improving the quality of life for citizens of Eau Claire by providing affordable housing and paying better wages, and encouraging environmentally-friendly actions within the community.
Boerboom said she will also be interning with the Department of Corrections this coming summer and fall, where she will have the opportunity to interact with a different part of the community.
Boerboom will be graduating from UW-Eau Claire in December with a bachelor’s degree in social work and a minor in Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies. She said her passion for the environment has inspired her to think about finding an organizational environmental job in the future.