I think we're where we are at because we lost all focus on local elections. Example below

https://matternews.org/theyre-all-friends-down-there-developers-gave-over-440k-to-city-officials-in-4-years/

• But this collaboration has also created a system of close ties where many in the city think one group of people retain power over city priorities, muffling the critiques of those outside the establishment and weakening the democratic functioning of our local government.

• I think they all work very well together … whether it’s a tax abatement or some kind of a zoning variance or a contract, I don’t think they have trouble getting what they want from the city,” Franklin County Republican Party Executive Director Josh Jaffe said.

Jaffe, who ran an unsuccessful campaign for city council in 2017, said city races haven’t been competitive for a “long time,” driven in part by the imbalance of campaign contributions going to incumbents, or those currently holding office.

“These are local races for your hometown City Council, and Columbus is a large city, but it’s not the biggest city,” Jaffe said.

“There’s a lot of money flowing into these campaigns, almost entirely into the campaigns of the incumbents.”

For example, Ginther ran unopposed for reelection in November, including a primary election that was cancelled because he had no challenger. Yet, he raised $112,750 ahead of that election.

• Even though Columbus changed how donors document contributions by encouraging fully-completed reports, a Matter analysis of campaign donor data found that 1,081 contributions lacked employer information or a full name. A majority of contributions lacking this data came from LLCs or PACs.

• Notable names like Abigail and Les Wexner report a variety of employers; some of those listed are L Brands, Whitebarn Associates, “self” and “philanthropist.”