Urbana Mayor Appoints Trivia Host, Julie Laut, to Vacant Ward 2 Seat

On Monday August 3^rd, 2020, Urbana Mayor Diane Marlin put forth an appointment for the City Council seat left vacant by Eric Jakobsson’s early resignation. According to Marlin, four residents applied for the Ward 2 seat, but only two of those applicants qualified based on the residency requirements: trivia host Julie Laut, and engineer and business owner Christopher Hansen.

Marlin indicated that prior to her decision, references for both candidates were contacted, and she personally interviewed the candidates. Both Hansen and Laut gave three minute statements at the previous City Council meeting on July 27^th, but the Council was not able to discuss the issue until Marlin had already brought the appointment forward on August 3^rd.

Julie touted her community involvement, specifically her hosting of a weekly trivia night, and what she calls a “little free pantry”, which consists of a small shelf and table of basic goods that resides in her front yard. Laut is also on the board of the Unitarian Universalist Church in Urbana.

Christopher Hansen has been an outspoken critic of local policing and the failures of local government since his wrongful arrest by Champaign Police in 2015. He is an 18 year Urbana resident and University of Illinois Electrical Engineering graduate. Hansen runs his own electronics business which he founded when he was in high school. Between his electronics business and other work restoring historic homes, Hansen has provided full-time employment for several Urbana residents, as well as part-time work for students.

As is typical with this Council, most Urbana Council members did not issue a statement about the appointment, but Ward 5 Alderman Dennis Roberts took time to speak in favor of Hansen. Roberts noted that Hansen has been substantially engaged with the Urbana government, attending and speaking regularly at meetings. Indeed, Hansen has been cited by many as a primary actor in facilitating change to Urbana’s Civilian Police Review Board, even authoring an article on the subject for the Public i.

Roberts raised concerns about Laut having not previously participated in local governmental issues, in stark contrast to Hansen, who has deeply immersed himself in local issues for the past several years.

Dennis Roberts:

“I would have taken the gamble and had Christopher come forward to be on Council. We’re at a time right now where a lot of dimensional change is being requested of the City Council to move forward out of traditional values and standards to something that’s more embracing, and transparent, and all-inclusive We’ve heard a lot from Chris on these topics; not really any comment before this nomination has come forward from Julie.”

The “gamble” Roberts referred to is likely a reference to Hansen’s unflinching criticism of misconduct and corruption within local government structures, which are often expressed weekly during public input at various public meetings.

Council member Maryalice Wu briefly spoke in favor of Laut’s appointment, again citing her trivia game work and her work organizing a 1960’s student reunion.

A friend of Julie Laut spoke about the appointment during public input, surprisingly, in support of Hansen:

“The City has before it, a choice between a really good candidate, and a stand-out candidate. Never mind the City Council appointment, Mr. Hansen has proven himself time and time again to be probably the most civically engaged resident of all of Urbana who is not currently seated on a government board or commission. Beyond that, Mr. Hansen’s renegade manner of agitating for reform is really exactly what Urbana needs to shake its government out of stagnation. As we all know, it is due effectively entirely to Mr. Hansen that Urbana is seeing a radical rebirthing of its Civilian Police Review Board, that we all hope will be an effective resource for residents moving forward. His proven commitment and dedication to reforming broken parts of the city machine is nothing short of exemplary, and I know that Mr. Hansen’s engagement with City government will continue, in one form or another. In closing, to Julie, if you are appointed, I would like to offer a couple of suggestions. First, I would encourage you to view all of the video recorded City Council meetings and relevant City and board meetings…my final thoughts for you are please don’t be safe, don’t be compliant, and don’t go along to get along, if appointed to the City Council.”

The Council voted in favor of Laut’s appointment, with Roberts abstaining. Laut was sworn-in by Mayor Marlin on August 4^th, and will serve the remainder of the term until May 3, 2021.