When Madison’s first female mayor announced her bid for reelection Sept. 23 in front of the Hawthorne Library, saying, “I am proud of what we have achieved in Madison,” few elected officials attended to endorse her.

Ald. Tom Powell, District 5, said he is not surprised by the lack of council support.

“Bauman has sat and watched things go by,” Powell said. “She has never developed strong working relationships.”

Nick Cekosh, state chair of the College Republicans, agrees and believes Bauman has also shunned the student community.

“It doesn’t really seem like she has been all that interested in student issues,” Cekosh said. “She’s sort of been there but hasn’t been proactive.”

Bauman was born and grew up in Queens, N.Y., and earned multiple advanced degrees, including a law degree from the University of Wisconsin in 1981.

A former Madison schoolteacher, Bauman served 12 years on the Madison City Council while practicing law before being elected mayor in a special election in 1997 when Paul Soglin stepped down from the position.

Bauman defeated perennial mayoral contender Wayne Bigelow by the slim margin of 55 votes. She won reelection in the 1999 election.

Bauman successfully engaged students in her 1997 campaign, Ald. Mike Verveer, District 4, said.

“She won the student vote overwhelmingly, carrying student districts by a 2:1 ratio, campaigning on ending Operation Sting,” Verveer said, referring to Bauman’s push to end undercover police raids of house parties. “However, over the last few years, she has seemingly become out of touch with the student population.”

Bauman disagrees; she said she is accessible to students and listens to their concerns. She cited Operation Sting as evidence of her commitment to student causes.

“I’ve eliminated the ‘party patrol’ who went out looking for parties,” Bauman said. “Today they talk to students and raise health and safety issues rather than ticket underage drinkers.”

Bauman said she is working to promote a healthy student environment through her support of drink-special and smoking bans, although she would prefer education before regulation.

Many students are critical of any drink-special regulation, however. Cekosh said he would like Madison’s mayor to speak on students’ behalf.

“She has not come out against Chancellor Wiley’s crusade to end drink specials. That’s an area in which she could help students out,” Cekosh said.

Powell and Ald. Brenda Konkel, District 2, said Bauman has been an obstacle to housing laws that would benefit students, including implementation of housing assistance and crackdown on landlord loopholes.

“Not only is her complete lack of leadership appalling, she has also stood in the way of progress on really important issues,” Konkel said.

Powell said Bauman effectively tabled all discussion of tenant issues for months and denied approval of the ordinances after promising future support for them.

Bauman, however, says affordable housing is in the limelight today because of her efforts.

“Six years ago, we didn’t talk about affordable housing, and now it’s at the forefront of our agenda,” Bauman said.

Another initiative Bauman cites as an example of her efforts to extend friendly relations to students is her “listening sessions” at Memorial Union, where Bauman engages in open discussion with students.

Council members and students, however, are critical of the effectiveness of Bauman’s listening sessions. Konkel said Bauman does not translate what she hears into action.

“She has the appearance that she is listening to people, but she never does anything about what she hears,” Konkel said.

Cekosh believes Bauman’s efforts to hear student views are insincere.

“Once in a while, she’ll come for a listening session at Memorial Union. That’s her kibble she throws to the students,” Cekosh said.

Godwin Amegashie, of the Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Minority Business, holds the opposite viewpoint; he said Bauman’s attentive ear to minorities has improved race relations in Madison.

“She has absolutely proven her leadership skills and really practiced inclusiveness,” Amegashie said.

Faith Kufahl, a Bauman supporter and organizer of the International Adoption Citizen Day for immigrant children, praised Bauman’s character and leadership.

Kufahl said Bauman was supportive of the annual foreign adoption day and believed she had no ulterior motives for attending the gala.

“She came and didn’t expect anything; she just showed her support. She is genuinely honest and dependable,” Kufahl said.

Bauman said students should vote for her April 1 because of her accessibility and her proactive approach to the office.

“I bring ideas together and cause things to happen,” Bauman said.

However, Powell believes Bauman has done little to mobilize the student voting base.

“You’d think for a mayor of the city of Madison, you have 200,000 people, 40,000 of them students,” Powell said. “A mayor of Madison has to know how to appeal to that kind of constituency, if you want them to vote on Election Day.”