'Warren County's Finest' nominations begin today

Over the past few months, the Main Street Journal has taken a great sense of pride in giving its readers the local content they crave.

Now we’re giving those readers something else – the chance to voice their own opinions on the finest our community has to offer in multiple categories, ranging from businesses and services to eateries and individuals who make McMinnville and Warren County great.

We’re calling it “Warren County’s Finest,” and the nomination process begins right here and right now.

Let’s be honest, Journal readers. We’d be lying if we said “Warren County’s Finest” was an original idea – it is not. Thousands of publications across the country have similar reader polls, allowing their audiences to select their favorites in one category or the other.

But there’s something that sets the Journal’s poll apart from many of the rest – honesty and transparency.

No  “bots” will be allowed. No nominee will be able to set up a program casting hundreds of thousands of votes for itself in the hopes of coming out on top. By the same token, no “boughts” will be allowed, either. Put simply, that means you can’t approach us here at Main Street Media, ask us how many votes it would take to win, and then buy that many votes.

If we’re going to do this, we’re going to do it the right way – on the up-and-up, win or lose, it’s the people’s choice. And it’s ONLY the people’s choice.

So, here’s how our system will work. In Phase One, we’ll accept nominations. Just go to the “Warren County’s Finest” page, located here, and enter your name and e-mail address. You can write in nominees in as many or as few categories as you’d like, just make sure you go all the way to the final page before clicking the final “done” button.

A month from now, the top nominees in each category will be collected and entered on a new ballot, allowing you to choose whichever you think best exemplifies the “finest” in that category. When that voting process ends, we’ll have our winners.

It’s just that simple. No shenanigans, no tomfoolery; just you, the reader, letting us know who, and what, you think make Warren County great.

Please take a few minutes to submit nominations and votes. And good luck to you all.