Predictions

Ok, it is now time to get out that crystal ball and summon up the demons and ghosts of elections past. What two candidates will emerge from tomorrow's primary as winners? How about an order of finish? Here is my prediction:

Pepper
Mallory
Reece
Winburn
Jeffre
Grisco
Noble

Mallory and Reece could switch, but I hope not. This is not be a big win for anyone. Pepper should start worrying if his votes plus Winburn's are not more than Mallory and Reece's together.

First Time Ever?

It has to be a first for a candidate to gain the support of Enquirer and the "Black Fist", but Mark Mallory has done just that. What may shock Nate is that I (Mr. "white folks") am going to vote for Mallory on Tuesday. I don't like to do endorsements, but I like Mallory. Mallory is a leader. He, I believe, would be best at being Mayor for all of Cincinnati, including me, Nate, the police, the Black Fist, business interests, and the homeless. I don't know if all of his ideas will work, and at this point that is not what I am looking for. Cincinnati needs a new positive direction, and Mr. Mallory is the best hope in moving on a road to something better.

Why the Black Fist likes Mallory is beyond me. I guess maybe Mark took the time to talk to them. It is wasted time in my opinion. They will grow to call Mark names if he gets elected Mayor, but it shows that Mallory can even reach out to the extremists in town, in hopes of changing their hate filled views. Charging at windmills I fear, but still a gallant try. Mallory should be our next mayor.

A Not So Bold Question

CinWeekly's question this week is really not bold and is very limited. It assumes a fallacy. Retail does not lead development, it follows it. All of the options listed would be great for downtown, but none of them alone will get people downtown. We need more retail downtown, but it is not going to be a cure all.

Council Fundraising

The latest Fundraising deadline came and went yesterday, and four council candidates failed to file campaign finance reports by the 4 PM deadline. Smitherman, Lynch, Herd, and Thomas did not file with the City. Why they missed is unknown, but a theory could be that they mistakenly only filed with the county, not the city. That is speculation on my part, but one that makes sense. If they missed filing, they could face a fine. Other than that, not much will happen as long as they file the reports.

The money totals can be found here.

Greg Korte has more on his blog.

The jaw dropper is that David Pepper has raised over a half a million dollars for the Mayor's race. The next closest is Mallory with 129,000.

Enquirer Endorses Mallory and Pepper

In their Sunday edition, which this story appears online for some reason today, the Enquirer endorses Mark Mallory and David Pepper in the Cincinnati Mayoral Primary. Reece and Winburn got a some comments, and the Enquirer gave their idea description of what the mayor should be.

Will this help anyone? I would be inclined to say that it will help Pepper and Mallory marginally. It hurts Winburn significantly.

Getting Out of Hand?

When you have to move the time of a high school football in part because of fears of violence, then the solutions in place are not working. What is causing the increase in local teenage violence? Is this all just teenage drug dealers encroaching on the schools? I do not understand how the people doing this can't be routed out and locked up. What is holding that back?

FOP Gets to Pound Some Sand

The State Employment Relations Board upheld the city police reform allowing the hiring of senior police managers from outside the city. This will in the long run a plus for the CPD and the city. If we can get new blood into the CPD leadership, police relationships with the rest of the community have a great chance at improving. If the FOP would only dump their right-wing leadership, they too might improve their relationship with the city leaders and with the citizens.