Meet East Lansing City Council Candidate Christopher Wardell
Editor’s note: This is third in the series of East Lansing City Council candidate profiles by ELi reporters. Eight candidates are vying for three open Council seats in the Nov. 7 election. Check out ELi’s Elections coverage for more profiles. ELi is partnering with the League of Women Voters for a 6:30 p.m. Sept. 14 City Council Candidate Forum. Click here to help ELi and the League formulate questions for the candidates.
Christopher Wardell, a long-time East Lansing area resident, is running for one of the three open seats on City Council.
After growing up in DeWitt, Wardell moved to Lansing in 1995, attended Lansing Community College and Michigan State University. He currently resides in the Bailey neighborhood with his wife Dr. Nicole Mason-Wardell and 4-year-old son Micah.
Wardell applied to fill the seat vacated by Lisa Babock earlier this year, but was not appointed.
“As a resident of the mid-Michigan area, and someone who’s been around and lived in East Lansing, I’ve seen the area grow in both good and bad ways,” Wardell wrote in that application.
Wardell’s background and experience
Wardell has many years of legislative experience. He started working for the Michigan House of Representatives in 2015. He has served as the Legislative Director for former State Representatives Cynthia Johnson, Alex Garza and Veronica Paiz. He currently works as the Chief of Staff for Representative Kevin Coleman.
He has also spent some time as a journalist at City Pulse, Lansing Community Newspapers, Relix Magazine and other publications. (Wardell has written stories for ELi in the past).
Wardell also serves in multiple community service roles.
He is the Vice Chair on the Board of Directors for the Michigan Disability Rights Coalition (MDRC), a commissioner for the East Lansing Arts Commission and a member of the Bailey Community Association Board.
Wardell explained in an email interview with ELi that he believes his past community service will aid him if he is elected to City Council.
“I’m someone who’s endured a lot of grief and tragedy in my life, but I’ve always gotten back up and kept going,” Wardell wrote. “I never quit mid-stream. In fact, after my brother died from complications due to spina bifida, I immediately got involved with disability rights and MDRC.”
He was on the fundraising committee for MDRC from 2018 to 2020 and elected as vice chair in 2021.
Wardell’s top priorities
Wardell said he is running for Council in order to bring “some fresh faces and new perspectives,” and gain back the trust of residents.
“I want to work alongside the new city manager, as well as city staff, and listen to what everyone feels is the best path forward,” Wardell wrote. “It’s not just about five or six people. Everyone, residents included, deserve a seat at the table.”
Wardell’s main focus when serving on City Council would be unity. He said transparency, accountability and equitable economic development are the main issues facing the city and bringing the community back together will help solve these problems.
As an individual member of City Council, Wardell expressed hopes to achieve a few specific things, the first being gaining the trust of residents back.
Additionally, Wardell hopes to focus on “low income family housing that’s affordable, and built by not for profit contractors.” He also wants to hold people accountable who don’t take care of their property.
“[I plan on] holding students and landlords accountable for junky houses and the garbage they leave behind,” Wardell wrote. “Most graduate, throw their garbage at the curb and peace out. There needs to be stiffer penalties for junky student housing.”
Wardell expressed this concern of garbage left behind in his application for Babcock’s seat as well, stating that “as the father of a 3-year-old, I want him to grow up with safe places to play, a sidewalk with no broken glass on it, as well as clean parks and safe schools.”
Wardell’s last two focus areas include sewer and sidewalk improvements, and equitable and safe policing.
“We need patrol cars back in our neighborhoods,” Wardell wrote. “There’s too many who speed through our neighborhoods in cars or on motorcycles. I’m sick of petty thefts and incidents like broken bottles – glass everywhere – stealing pumpkins. We can do better and I want to work with our officers to give them what they need to achieve this. We also need to retain our officers.”
In summary, Wardell said he is running because he loves East Lansing, he wishes to unify the city, he wants a safe space for his son to grow up and he believes “people are ready for some new voices and leadership.”
Editor’s note: The order of publication of the East Lansing City Council candidates profiles was determined by names being put in a hat and randomly drawn. The order the names were drawn is the order the profiles are running in ELi.
Correction: This story has been updated as of 6:04 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 6, 2023, to reflect that Chris Wardell has served as the Legislative Director for former State Representatives Cynthia Johnson, Alex Garza and Veronica Paiz. He currently works as the Chief of Staff for Representative Kevin Coleman. Also, he was on the fundraising committee for MDRC from 2018 to 2020 and elected as vice chair in 2021. Wardell is married to Dr. Nicole Mason-Wardell.