Tuesday, January 26, 2010

The Louisville Mayoral Race

It's the deadline to file for Mayor of Louisville, and at last count we are up to eleven candidates.

My prediction is that Greg Fischer will win. To be sure, he was an unimpressive candidate in the Democratic primary for U.S. Senate. Since that loss, a local businessman sent Fischer to public speaking classes; apparently they worked. Now Fischer needs get professional help on his television commercials (although my boys thought the Fischer wrestling match ad against Bruce "Mud Man" Lunsford was the funniest commercial they have ever seen).

What convinces me that Fischer will win is the number of conservatives who have signed on to his campaign at the outset. These are smart, thoughtful business people for whom I have great respect. Their endorsement and contribution to Fischer's campaign matters.

Republican Hal Heiner must be furious at the number or Republicans who have bailed on him.

Fischer cannot be painted as the candidate of big business, however, due to the number of labor endorsements he received in his bid for Senate and his current campaign. That is, Fischer seems best poised to strike that sensitive balance between management and labor --between creating a climate that allows businesses to grow while also protecting the interests of union members. That's exactly the coalition that the next mayor of Louisville needs to govern effectively.



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