With all of the District’s political fundraisers going on this summer, the uninformed observer could easily but mistakenly think the city’s elections were being held this fall, not next.
“It’s going to be just too messy,” one city politician said of the upcoming campaign season.
Indeed, it will not be “business as usual,” as another said.
You’re going to need a Washington Nationals scorecard as fresh and familiar faces burst onto the campaign scene.
Already you can feel the cracks in old alliances and envision divided households as voters and volunteers align themselves behind their favored pols’ platforms for mayor and the D.C. Council.
Indicative of the unusual vulnerability of city incumbents is the number of newcomers who are not following polite political tradition but are striking out early to stake their claims to commitments, constituencies and coffers.
Most contenders say they “can’t afford to wait” on the incumbents because it’s a different day in D.C. politics.
The old, lopsided formula that rolled the BowTie Bandit bandwagon of Mayor Anthony A. Williams into office — huge Maryland and Virginia corporate campaign stipends, television spots and Ward 3 supporters — is passe.
Money may be the mainstay in politics, but D.C. Council upstarts who have unseated incumbents by going door to door in the city’s forgotten corners have forged a new winning model.
“This will be a ground game, a dogfight on the ground,” said A. Scott Bolden, former head of the D.C. Democratic State Committee.
As campaigners vie for voters, “you’ve got to like retail politics at its best to win,” he said.
Council member Adrian M. Fenty, Ward 4 Democrat, “proved that formula in ward politics,” Mr. Bolden said. Council member Kwame R. Brown, at-large Democrat, “proved that formula citywide on the council. Now that formula will be put to the test in the mayor’s race.”
Last month, Mr. Bolden dropped his mayoral aspirations to run for the at-large council seat held tenuously by Democrat Phil Mendelson.
Like Mr. Bolden, newcomer David Bowers, co-founder of No Murders DC, is burning the candle at both ends, attending countless community meetings to drum up name recognition and support.
As for the already crowded mayor’s race 15 months before the September 2006 primary, another hopeful is throwing her hat into the ring.
I hinted last year that former Verizon executive Marie Johns would run for mayor after she retired, even though she emphatically told me she wouldn’t.
This morning, the 53-year-old Mrs. Johns, with her family at her side, will file notification papers with the D.C. Office of Campaign Finance. She then plans to spend the afternoon “going door to door” in Ward 5.
“I have a unique set of qualifications to offer from my leadership on the business side and in community roles to bridge the different elements in the city, which is what we need now as the city faces tough issues,” said Mrs. Johns, a Ward 3 resident.
Mr. Fenty and council member Vincent B. Orange Sr., Ward 5 Democrat, have announced their mayoral candidacies. Pundits expect council Chairman Linda W. Cropp to announce her mayoral intentions after Labor Day.
Among the other mayoral contenders is businessman Michael Brown, a Democratic National Committee operative.
As usual, former Assistant U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder is considering a run, if the two-term incumbent decides (hopefully) to retire.
Which brings me to Travelin’ Tony.
This week he’s hula dancing in Honolulu when he should be door-knocking on Hawaii Avenue if he were serious about seeking re-election.
You’d be hard-pressed to find anyone, inside or outside of government, who doesn’t say Mr. Williams is a lame duck. The majority consensus, in my unscientific polling, is that he’s “outta here.” (He is infamously known for bellyaching about not making enough money in public office, for one thing.)
“If he runs, he wins. But he has to run,” one political observer said. “But right now, he’s not running. He has no organization, no loyalty base, and he’s not reaching out to anyone.”
Oddly, one Williams administration staffer said the mayor’s June 29 appreciation party for his Cabinet and others “was like a farewell party.”
“We all sat around as he gave out appreciation certificates and took pictures with about 100 people,” she said. “And there was cake, and everyone was hugging each other, and [Mr. Williams] made a speech thanking everyone, but he never said, ’I’m going to need you in the future,’ and when we left, people were saying, ’This is it.’”
Obviously the sharks-in-waiting smell blood in the water.
One survey by a noted Democratic pollster shows Mr. Fenty ahead of the pack. With Mr. Williams in the race, Mr. Fenty is eight percentage points behind the leader. With Mr. Williams out of the race, Mr. Fenty is the leader, besting his nearest competitor, Mrs. Cropp, by 15 points.
Mind you, it’s still too early to bank on these poll numbers, especially since not everyone has declared or campaigned for mayor.
But the longer the mayor and other incumbents are indecisive, the faster their contenders will force the campaign decision for them.
The welcome news is that no city voters will be taken for granted. They are bound to come face to face with a variety of viable options for public office in the upcoming political year.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.