SUPPOSE THEY GAVE AN ELECTION and nobody came — again! There are going to be Rome City Commission posts in Ward 2 (basically East, South Rome) up for grabs this year on Nov. 5. The qualifying period is Aug. 26-30 and, for $252 and residency in the ward, anybody could offer their name. (The $252 filing fee is the required 3 percent of the annual position pay of $8,400.)

Will anybody other than the incumbents (Jamie Doss, Sue Lee, Detrick Redding) be interested? Or will even they decide they’ve heard enough about chickens and opt for different ways to spend their Monday evenings?

And what if nobody at all wants to tend the city budget, figuring their own household ones are giving them enough agony?

This is a serious question as, back in 2011, the municipal elections were canceled for lack of anybody but the five incumbents plus a sole seeker for an empty seat bothering to show interest. The commission then made a budget decision: Call the election off for money-saving budget purposes and just declare all present members of the ruling body re-elected by acclamation like true Roman emperors.

Nothing against any of the incumbents — now and back then — but shouldn’t the people at least have the opportunity to not show up at the polls on their own to display a negative opinion rather than not having an election to boycott at all?