University of Northern Iowa sophomore Gage Rewerts is running for the position of Cedar Falls mayor. Rewerts, 22, a third-year student from Wellsburg, Iowa, declared his intention to the Northern Iowa Student Government in a recent meeting. On Monday, he submitted his application to the Cedar Falls Court House.

Grievances toward the City of Cedar Falls and those in charge are what motivated him to make a statement and to attempt to make a change.

According to Rewerts, these grievances stem from a comment made by a local city council member who referred to the students of UNI as tourists. In effect, Rewerts saw this comment as the “the straw that broke the camel’s back,” and in his opinion, essentially depicted UNI students as a purely transitional population of little importance.

As a senator on the government and legal affairs committee of NISG, Rewerts asserted that his involvement has provided him with good leadership experience. When asked what else might qualify him to carry out the role as mayor, Rewerts jokingly added, “I worked as a camp counselor watching children – I can’t see how it’ll be much different (as mayor).”

Coming from a tight-knit rural community, Rewerts has found it difficult to comprehend why Cedar Falls is not more community-centered. He feels that the City of Cedar Falls has a superior attitude toward the students who attend its university. By running for mayor, Rewerts hopes to show that students have just as much riding on the success of Cedar Falls as any other city resident.

If he does in fact become mayor, he hopes that the interaction between the city government and students moves beyond merely “slapping parking tickets” on students’ vehicles.

Rewerts’s platform includes encouraging the city to create better opportunities for students in order for them to truly become a part of the community. Examples he gave were providing internships and various volunteer opportunities.

“We are a community of 13,000 educated people (and should be involved in Cedar Fall’s betterment),” said Rewerts. “(My goal is to) build stronger ties – not just with the university and NISG, but with students in general.

“I realize that I am going against a 30-year incumbent,” Rewerts continued. “Winning is a possibility and something to strive for, but mostly voicing the concerns of a large part of Cedar Falls is a victory. I need to change the hearts and minds of students to change the hearts and minds of Cedar Falls.”

Rewerts encourages students to vote Nov. 3. Regardless of whether one has grown up in Cedar Falls or not, registration and voting on the same day is an option that he asks students to take advantage of.

“If you do not register or vote about what goes on in Cedar Falls, you’re pretty much proving the city right: you are nothing better than tourists,” Rewerts concluded.