Councillors need more presence on social media, political science professor says

City councillors need to reach out on social media and make sure their votes represent their wards to make the most of their duties, a political science professor at the University of Windsor says.

Sarah Dunphy, an assistant professor in political science at the University of Windsor spoke with CBC on how we graded Windsor city council members.

"I thought it was very well done as a report," Dunphy said. "Of course the question is, is how much is there going to be a takeaway by the citizens of Windsor. Just because local politics is something that is understudied by the average citizen."

Dunphy said looking at salary, how many meetings were attended and council members' interaction on social media are items that should be looked at in a local government setting.

"I think there might ought to be a redirection in light of things like social media and sort of reevaluating what kinds of things do they do," Dunphy said.

"Maybe they need to get themselves out there more," she said. "Maybe the onus isn't on CBC or a citizen, it's on them showing them they're representing those individuals. And why would I want to elect you to represent me?"

Dunphy said it's important for councillors to vote how ward wants — not how they lean politically.

"I think that that's really important for them to reflect their wards, because if they're not and they're sort of operating at a very meta level for individuals, then individuals don't feel like they need to connect with those represented in their ward," Dunphy said.

"It's supposed to be more direct in terms of issues for the citizen for the city of Windsor," she said.