A recent letter titled “Best practices” implored Cecil Yates to serve as a role model and “resign immediately from your seat on the town council and concentrate on your campaign for mayor.”

It suggested that doing so would allow his would-be constituents (Constituency- a body of citizens entitled to elect a representative) to elect his replacement on the council. If he does not resign by the deadline, only six or seven “constituents” (mayor and council) will “elect” his replacement.

If the citizens of Fountain Hills are to have faith and trust (which has been sorely missing) in our elected officials, we must decide who will fill your seat. If you, Mr. Yates, truly want to exhibit the leadership required to be mayor of this great town, then do what is clearly the right thing and step down immediately.

“All politics are local,” which means to truly represent the people who elected you one must listen carefully to one’s constituency and do the right thing by them. It means to serve the local citizenry by addressing resident-centered concerns.