Challenger Taneeza Islam keeps incumbent Paul TenHaken on his toes ahead of election: Analysis

As the three mayoral candidates for Sioux Falls came together on back-to-back nights this week for a pair of debates, their answers to the questions had a tendency to circle back to a few topics.

With no other debates planned ahead of election day April 12, they were the candidates' biggest chances to compare and contrast what could be their styles of governing over the next four years for the general public.

And while the advantage of Mayor Paul TenHaken's incumbency still looms large — a sitting mayor hasn't lost re-election since the strong-mayor form of government was adopted in 1994 — challenger Taneeza Islam worked overtime to showcase that, as she said, "the city has lost touch with the needs of everyday people."

Most apparent was Islam’s refrain, whether the topic was the rising cost of childcare, the city’s growing homeless population or affordable housing.

More: Five things we learned during the Sioux Falls mayoral debate Monday night

“We need the city to step in and take leadership of these issues," she said.

Islam returned to that idea again and again as she contrasted herself with Mayor Paul TenHaken, who she said hasn’t dealt with issues he promised he would and has no plans for some of the issues he could face during the next four years if re-elected.

The city should have been pushing Amazon to help building housing as they prepared to enter Sioux Falls, and doing more to deal with the issue of long waitlists for infant care that could have cascading effects on employment, she said.

TenHaken cites importance of 'slow, incremental change' countering Islam

TenHaken’s counter — often not in response to Islam herself — was to say while these were all significant problems the city had to face, it’s government didn’t always need to be at the forefront of the solution.

More: Here's what voters should know before the April 12 election in Sioux Falls

Speaking on childcare, he said often the question in a complex issue like this was, “Is it the city’s problem to solve, or is this a ‘we’ problem to solve?” 

City involvement is needed, sure, he said, but also is buy-in from non-profits, the county, the school districts.

He also focused on the importance of slow, incremental change, saying several times there was “no silver bullet solution” to many of the issues facing the city. 

Pointing to a tiny-home community for homeless vets currently in the works in the city, he said he tells his administration they need to be looking to hit singles, not home runs.

“There’s a lot of singles to be had in government,” he said.

David Zokaites chimes in on marijuana, housing debate 

And while TenHaken and Islam took pains in both debates to make clear the differences between each other apparent in their answers, challenger David Zokaites — a regular appearance at City Council meetings with his trademark slideshows that conclude with a nature photo — did things his own way, to no one's surprise.

For Zokaites, the solution to many of the city’s problems was to “fix who pays for elections,” saying the expense of campaigning causes politicians to “sell out.”

He added several monetary problems within the city could be solved, or at least aided, by legalizing and taxing recreational marijuana.

During both debates, he discussed the idea that affordable housing could be addressed by creating quotas — a certain number of tiny homes being built for every large home, for example.

Mayor Paul TenHaken, Taneeza Islam trade blows over marijuana, police

The debates also saw some tensions begin to arise between TenHaken and Islam, who called it “disingenuous” for TenHaken to say he’d follow the will of the voters and criticizing his implementation of medical marijuana regulations.

TenHaken's administration capped the number of medical marijuana dispensaries in the city at five, a decision he's stood behind while saying he supported and voted for IM-26, which legalized medical marijuana.

And TenHaken criticized Islam during a debate question on public safety that “Some people sitting alongside me today stood on the steps of City Hall calling for me to reform our police.”

More: Mayor Paul TenHaken calls Janet Brekke's claims of intimidation 'publicity stunt'

It was certainly nothing compared to the comments traded between TenHaken and Janet Brekke on Tuesday over claims of intimidating text messages, but with less than a week until election day, it stands out.

Which of these visions will guide Sioux Falls through the next four years? We won't have to wait long to find out.