On Friday, June 20 the City Clerk verified that 7 candidates out of 11 total candidates for Mayor successfully gathered 100% of the 3,000 qualifying nominating petition signatures from Albuquerque registered voters. All seven will appear on the November 4 municipal ballot. If no one of the 7 candidates secures 50% plus one of the vote, the two top vote getters will face each other in a run off election which must be held within 45 days of the November 4 election.
All 11 Candidates for Mayor had from April 19, 2025 to June 21, 2025 by 5:00 pm, 64 days, to collect the required 3,000 verified signatures. The seven candidates who have qualified for the ballot gathering more than 3,000 nominating signatures are:
- Incumbent Mayor Tim Keller qualified for the ballot after securing 4,786 signatures, the most of all the candidates.
- Eddie Varela, a retired Albuquerque firefighter and former California fire chief, qualified after securing 3,973 signatures, the second most among candidates.
- Alex Uballez, the former U.S. attorney for the District of New Mexico, qualified after securing 3,643 signatures.
- Louie Sanchez, a former police officer and current city councilor, qualified after securing 3,588 signatures.
- Darren White, the former sheriff of Bernalillo County and CEO of cannabis company PurLife, qualified after receiving 3,562 signatures.
- Daniel Chavez, president of Parking Company of America was the very first to qualify for the ballot after securing 3,427 signatures.
- Mayling Armijo, the former director of Economic Development for Bernalillo County and deputy county manager for Sandoval County, qualified after securing 3,370 signatures.
The four candidates who have failed to secure the 3,000 qualifying signature and who have failed to make the ballot as of Friday June 20 are:
- Patrick Sais, who has run for mayor before and a state house seat unsuccessfully in the past collected 1,052 verified signatures.
- Alpana Adair, a former hospitality consultant collected 29 verified signatures.
- Brian Fejer, a local blogger, withdrew from the race collected 77 verified signature
- Adeo Herrick, who regularly criticizes the city during the City Council’s general comment period secured 38 verified signatures.
The link to a quoted or relied upon news source is here:
The city link to review the City Clerk’s total raw data tabulations of verified petition signatures and rejected petition signatures for each of the 11 candidates is here:
MAYOR KELLER ONLY CANIDATE TO QUALIFY FOR PUBLIC FINANCE
Public finance candidates for Mayor were required to collect 3,780 donations of $5.00 to the city from registered voters to qualify for the city to give them $755,946 in city financing for their campaigns. The time frame to collect both nominating petition signatures and $5.00 qualifying contributions was the same period and was from April 19, 2025 to June 21, 2025.
The 8 original candidates who declared themselves to be “public finance” candidates are Alpana Adair, Alexander Uballez, Darren White, Tim Keller, Louis Sanchez, Edie Varella, Patrick Sais and Adeo Herrick. Six candidates withdrew their application for public finance. The only two candidates who remained public financed candidates were Tim Keller and Adeo Henrick.
Adeo Herrick collected only 7 of the 3,780 required verified qualifying $5.00 donations and only 29 of the 3,000 required nominating petition signatures, thereby failing to qualify for the ballot and failing to qualify for public finance.
On June 20, the City Clerk determined that Tim Keller was the only candidate to qualify for public finance. The following are the processed public finance qualifying donations for Tim Keller as of Friday June 20:
- Required Qualifying Contributions 3,780
- Verified Qualifying Contributions 4,046
- Rejected Qualifying Contributions 361
- Remaining Qualifying Contributions Needed -0-
- Percentage of Verified Qualifying Contributions Met 100%
Some politcal pundits and columnists are saying that if Keller’s opponents are unable to raise sufficient campaign donations, there is a possibility that Keller could capture 50% of the vote and avoid a runoff election between the top two finishers. That is wishful thinking. Keller will need every penny of his public finance and then some to deal with his low approval ratings as the campaign drags on over the summer and into the fall and his opponents hit him hard on the issues until November 4.
Notwithstanding, all of Keller’s opponents are relegated to scrambling for private financing unless they are wealthy enough to self-finance. It’s unknown how they will do with private fundraising, but we will soon see as campaign finance reports are required to be filed and made public. The only candidate that likely has the ability to private finance his campaign is Parking Company of America CAO Daniel Chavez who has already donated $100,000 of his personal money to finance the collection of the ballot qualifying nominating signatures.
SEPTEMER 2 ONLY DAY FOR WRITE IN CANDIDATES TO FILE
Although the time frame for candidates to announce and qualify for the ballot for Mayor has come and gone, there is still an option for people to declare as write in candidates. In 2023, the New Mexico Legislature enacted a law that allows for write in candidates in all regular local elections which includes municipal elections. The link to the statute is here:
https://law.justia.com/codes/new-mexico/chapter-1/article-22/section-1-22-8-1/
A person desiring to be a write-in candidate for Mayor must file with the Bernalillo County Clerk a declaration of intent to be a write-in candidate because it is the Bernalillo County Clerk who oversees the election and counts the ballots under the Local Election Act. Write in candidates are given only one day to file a “declaration of intent to be a write in candidate” for Mayor. The City Clerk’s Candidate Calendar published on the City Clerk’s web page states the filing date for write-in-candidates is Tuesday, September 2.
The “declaration of intent to be a write in candidate” must be accompanied by a nominating petition containing the same number of signatures required of candidates for Mayor which is 3,000 signatures. Under the law, a write-in candidate is considered a candidate for all purposes and provisions relating to candidates in the Local Election Act, except that the write-in candidate’s name shall not be printed on the ballot nor posted in any polling place.
City of Albuquerque nominating petition forms to collect signatures to nominate a candidate for Mayor as a write in candidate may be obtained from City Clerk Ethan Waston whose email address is ewatson@cabq.gov. The City Clerk’s office is located in the Plaza Del Sol Building, 600 2nd St NW, Albuquerque, NM 87102 and the phone number is (505) 924-3650.
Instructions on how to use the petitions can be found at this link:
How to use the Petition Form for Mayoral Candidates
There are examples of petitions on the City Clerks training page which can be found here:
https://www.cabq.gov/vote/training-videos
COMMENTARY AND ANALYSIS
Mayor Tim Keller is seeking a third consecutive four-year term despite the fact he has a very low approval rating. Keller’s approval rating is believed to be in the 30% to 33% range based on past polls. Notwithstanding Keller’s low approval ratings, he will likely make it into a run off, either first or second, because of his loyal base of progressive Democrats he has relied upon every single time he has run for office including NM State Senate, New Mexico State Auditor and twice as Mayor.
The fact that Keller is the only candidate to secure $755,946 in public finance is also evidence he is running against a very weak field of candidates. There is also the Measured Finance Committee Ascend Albuquerque set up to promote Keller’s candidacy. The measured finance committee has already raised $38,500 in total contributions from 8 major donors. Given the involvement of two well-known, respected progressive Democratic fundraisers, the measured fiancé committee will likely raise thousands more to promote Keller or tear down his opponents. The city link to Ascend Albuquerque is here:
KELLER PROCLAIMS CITY ON THE COMEBACK
There is little doubt that the campaign for Mayor has already commenced in earnest, especially by Keller. Keller recently cast the current moment as a comeback for Albuquerque and in a real sense he is talking about a comeback for himself.
On June 17, during a luncheon speech before the Greater Albuquerque Chamber of Commerce at the Embassy Suites, Keller reflected on his seven years in office, going back to 2017 when he initially started working with the Albuquerque Chamber of Commerce on the major issues affecting companies and families: the economy, crime and homelessness.
Keller told business leaders this:
“We’ve done the real work. We’ve tried to fix and build systems that will last well beyond myself or folks who are in leadership positions in this room. We’ve also weathered pandemics, protests, two governors, two presidents, but through it all, what you see now is we’re tested. We are trusted to hold this together. … And Albuquerque is making a comeback.”
The most revealing words spoken by Keller are “We’ve tried to fix and build systems … ” “Trying” just does not cut it when Keller acknowledges the same issues of the economy, crime and the homeless are still present today as when he ran the first time 7 years ago. Mayor Keller acknowledged how crime and homelessness have impacted Albuquerque’s businesses but he said the city has made major strides in addressing all three areas.
The link to the quoted news source is here:
https://www.abqjournal.com/business/article_11730ceb-785a-4cd4-a49f-0b028cd76e29.html
KELLER’S OPPOSITION
Virtually every single one of Keller’s opponents have said he does not deserve to be elected to a third four year term and that crime and the homeless have risen sharply during Keller’s two terms in office years. They all proclaim they can do better but fail to fully articulate how. Keller’s 6 opponents argue he hasn’t done enough to combat crime and the homeless. The following is an analysis of all six of Keller’s opponents:
REPUBLICAN DARREN WHITE
Republican Darren White is the controversial former Cabinet Secretary of the Department of Public Safety for then Republican Governor Gary Johnson. White is a former two term Bernalillo County Sheriff and former Albuquerque Chief Public Safety Officer under Republican Mayor Richard Berry. When Darren White was Albuquerque Chief Public Safety Officer, he “retired” from the city after he interfered with an APD investigation of his wife involved in an accident. Following his career in law enforcement, White changed his strong opposition to the legalization of marijuana. He started his own cannabis dispensary company called PurLife.
Darren White has been the most critical of Mayor Tim Keller’s record, particularly concerning crime, the homeless and falsely proclaiming Keller has made Albuquerque a sanctuary city. White asserts that there have been 660 murders during Keller’s years in office, that an alarming number of businesses have had to close down because of crime and because that Keller has made Albuquerque a “sanctuary city.”
White proclaimed in his announcement:
“Mayor Keller has presided over the most murders in Albuquerque’s history. His weak approach to crime and homelessness has failed and it’s time for change.”
In a fund raising letter, White falsely proclaimed this:
“One of Keller’s first acts as Mayor was too make Albuquerque a Sanctuary City for illegal immigrants who commit crimes. Now we have case after case of violent crimes being committed by illegal immigrants, many of who have been arrested multiple times but turned back onto the streets by this Mayor’s backward policies. As Mayor, I will end the Sanctuary City law immediately.”
Albuquerque is not a “Sanctuary City” as White proclaims. A “Sanctuary City” is a jurisdiction that prohibits local law enforcement from a enforcing federal immigration laws leaving that work exclusively to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
It was in 2001, long before Keller became Mayor, that the city council declared the city to be an “Immigrant-Friendly City”. It establishes City Of Albuquerque policies regarding immigrants and their families, regardless of immigration status and establishes a city immigrant resource program “Immigrant Friendly” cities enact policies that are favorable to undocumented people to allow services. Its local law enforcement personnel do not make arrests for violations of federal immigration laws and only make arrests of undocumented people for violations of local ordinances and state laws.
DEMOCRAT LOUIE SANCHEZ
Democrat Louie Sanchez is a first term District 1 City Councilor for the West side. He is a retired APD Police Officer and was head of former Mayor Marty Chavez’s security detail. He is the owner of the Louie Sanchez All State Insurance Agency. Sanchez’s campaign website calls for “safer communities,” “a stronger community” and “solutions for homelessness” but he provides little or no specifics. Sanchez has been critical of Keller regarding issues of transparency, accountability, and the management of APD. Sanchez has called for the termination of Chief Harold Medina who will likely remain if Keller is elected to a third term.
Many Democrats accuse Sanchez of being a Democrat in Name Only (DINO). Sanchez is known to support ordinances sponsored by Republicans and oppose ordinances sponsored by Democrats. Sanchez supported the abolishment of the current strong Mayor form of government falsely proclaiming it does not work and he advocated it be replaced with a City Manager appointed by the Council, now he wants to be Mayor.
Sanchez is considered the swing vote on the City Council and has shown it by repeatedly voting with all 4 of the Republicans on the City Council to repeal ordinances enacted by the previous progressive city council. On April 4, 2022 Councilor Sanchez voted with the 4 Republicans to repeal “City Project Labor Agreement” requirements mandating use of union labor in city construction contracts. City Council Louie Sanchez offended all city unions when he said this about his vote to repeal the Project Labor agreement ordinance: “I know the competition is good. … I really feel everybody has to have a piece of the pie. … Another thing I know, because I was a union member for so long, is that, there is a lot of slugs in the union. I know that for a fact.”
DEMOCRAT ALEXANDER M. M. UBALLEZ
Democrat Alexander M. M. Uballez is the Former New Mexico U.S. Attorney who was fired by President Trump on Valentines Day February 14. Although he has absolutely no experience as an elected official, Uballez proclaims his experience as a prosecutor, combined with his two years at the helm of the U.S. Attorney’s Office, would play a key role in addressing Albuquerque’s crime and public safety issues. There is a big difference between managing a federal prosecutors office of upwards of 120 employees to overseeing a municipality with 29 divisions, with upwards of 7,000 full-time employees and a $1.2 Billion budget.
Uballez’s biggest claim to fame is bringing federal charges against law enforcement officers and the ring leaders involved in the DWI bribery and conspiracy scandal to dismiss hundreds of DWI cases. Confidential sources report that Uballez wanted the FBI to turn over cases to his office so that his office could bring charges in January, 2025 before he was fired by Trump to get recognition and take credit for the prosecutions. Criminal Defense Attorney Thomas Clear and his investigator along with15 APD officers, 3 Sherriff Deputies, and 1 State Police Officer have been implicated in the bribery scheme to get cases dismissed in the largest bribery and conspiracy case in the city’s history. Instead of bringing charges against all 21, Uballez essentially “cherry picked” the 5 most prominent cases to prosecute to enable him to take credit. There is no guarantee that all the others will be prosecuted.
Then there is the matter of when on January 25, 2024 then US Attorney Alexander Uballez sent a letter to Bernalillo Country District Attorney Sam Bregman that outed the FBI federal DWI Enterprise investigation stating in part there was “an ongoing and covert, federal investigation involving the APD .” The letter placed into jeopardy the federal investigation of APD when the letter was distributed to the media and made public. The letter likely violated the Department of Justice protocols and ethical standards when it was sent to Bregman and then released to the news media. Publication of the letter by the media undermined the confidentiality of the criminal investigation.
Political analysts, city hall watchers and Democratic Party insiders are saying Uballez has picked up the backing of younger progressive Democrats who have become very disillusioned and dissatisfied with progressive Democrat Tim Keller. Uballez has said of Keller that a third term is only warranted when a leader has “absolutely crushed it and delivered on all the promises,” which he doesn’t believe is the case with Keller’s tenure. He points to areas like public safety, homelessness, and economic development as evidence of stagnation and a lack of progress under Keller’s leadership.
Uballez failed to secure public financing and argued the current system favors incumbents like Keller due to their name recognition and established political infrastructure, making it difficult for newcomers to compete.
REPUBLICAN EDDIE VARELA
Republican Eddie Varela is a retired Albuquerque firefighter and former California fire chief. Varela’s campaign website lists six issues, including safety, homelessness, transparency, seniors, youth and small businesses as his top priorities giving few specifics. Varela said he wants to restore public safety, rebuild trust in the government and revitalize the economy. Like the other candidates, he is running on a platform advocating for change.
He has stated that on his first day, he would declare war on crime and implement a curfew for those 18 and under. Varela has stated that he would not push to declare Albuquerque an “immigrant-friendly” nor “sanctuary city” and believes the city should cooperate with all federal agencies.
Varela has said he did not vote for Donald Trump nor Kamala Harris for President, but now that Trump has been elected, he feels that Trump is doing a “great job” as President. Varela has said that he agrees with President Trump’s and Elon Musk’s severe cuts to government and reducing the size of the federal government. Varela has not said how he will deal with the Trump Administration cutting millions of federal funding to the city.
DEMOCRAT MAYLING ARMIJO
Democrat Mayling Armijo is a former Deputy County Manager for Sandoval County. On her campaign website, she lists her priorities as crime, housing and homelessness, substance abuse, job growth, and setting term limits for the mayor’s office. She proclaims that she is not a politician and offers very little specifics on how she will bring down crime. Her experience includes working as economic development director for Bernalillo County, the deputy County Manager for Sandoval County and work with the New Mexico Economic Development Department.
Armijo is a privately financed candidate and a separate measured finance committee has been formed to promote her and has already raised $140,000. Reasons for running against Keller include her general dissatisfaction with the Keller administration. Armijo stated that she “didn’t see anybody else jumping in, and [she] knew that [they] couldn’t do another four years of this current administration”.
INDEPENDENT DAN CHAVEZ
Independent Daniel Chavez was born and raised in Albuquerque. After graduating from the University of New Mexico with his bachelor’s degree in 1995, Daniel Chavez acquired the Albuquerque branch of Parking Company of America which is the managing company of several parking lots in the city. Chavez is President of the company. Chavez has never run for or held office and is considered a virtual unknown. Chavez has said if elected he would focus on making Albuquerque safer and creating economic opportunities but offers little or no specifics. He is a privately financed candidate.
Daniel Chavez has said very little publicly about Mayor Keller. Chavez’s campaign strategy was to first qualify for the ballot by spending $100,000 of his own money to surpass Keller in collecting nominating signatures to be first to get on the ballot and to gain attention for his campaign. Chavez believes the public finance system, historically, has benefited incumbents like Keller, suggesting it acts as an “incumbent protection plan“. Chaves appears to be wealthy enough to self-finance. Chavez, like all others running against Keller cites concerns about crime and homelessness, but offers no specifics on what he intends to do.
KELLER’S RECORD OF FAILURE
The biggest problem Keller has for his re-election is that during his two terms, he has been a major failure if not an outright disaster when it comes to city management, policy and addressing the city’s complex problems. Thus far the candidates running against Keller state the obvious problems the city is facing such as crime is out of control and the homeless have taken over the city but they offer no real solutions. Keller did the exact same thing when he ran for mayor the first time seven years ago, but now he must run on his own record.
CRIME FIGHTING FAILURE
Seven years ago when Keller first ran and became Mayor, he proclaimed violent crime was out of control, that he could get it down and that he would increase APD sworn from the then 850 to 1,200. Violent crime and homicides continues to spike and are out of control seven years later with APD currently at about 900 sworn officers. The city’s ongoing homicide and violent crime rates continue to be at historical highs and people simply do not feel safe in their homes as the fentanyl crisis surges. APD ranks number one in police killings of citizens in the top 50 largest cities in the country.
Mayor Keller and Chief Harold Medina have seriously mismanaged the ongoing train wreck known as the Albuquerque Police Department with the department still dangerously understaffed at about 900 cops despite seven years of increased budgets, salary increases and lucrative bonus pay. Of the 900 sworn police, there are only 250 sworn officers patrolling the streets of Albuquerque divided into 3 shifts. Its not uncommon for entire area commands being patrolled by 2 or 4 officers because others are on leave. Keller has literally thrown money at the problem. This coming from the Mayor who promised 1,200 cops during his first term. During a recent APD Academy graduation, Keller promised 1,000 cops by the end of the year which is not at all likely given expected retirements.
APD CORRUPTION
Then there is the largest bribery and corruption case in APD’s history with 14 APD Officers implicated and 3 who have been federally charged and who have plead guilty to federal bribery and conspiracy charges involving the dismissal of hundreds of DWI cases for bribes. The former APD officers face up to 130 years in prison. Both Keller and Chief Medina have failed to take any responsibility for what happened under their watch as they deflect and blame others. They both have blamed the Court’s, the DAs Office and the Public Defenders for the DWI dismissals.’
THE HOMELESS CRISIS
Keller has spent over $300 million in the last 3 years on homeless shelters, programs, and the city purchasing and remodeling motels for low-income housing. The approved 2026 city budget contains an additional $56 million for homeless services and contracts with providers. The funding is an “unsustainable black hole” of expenditures.
Keller has taken an “all the above approach” to deal with the city’s homeless. The city has a total of 5 shelters to deal with the homeless that should be operating as an integrated system:
- The Gibson Gateway shelter
- The Gateway West shelter
- The Family Gateway shelter
- The Youth Homeless shelter
- The Recovery Shelter
The blunt reality is that Mayor Keller has essentially proclaimed the unhoused as “wards of the city” when such a responsibility should be undertaken by the state or federal government.
The recent annual Point In Time homeless survey count found an 18% increase in the homeless with upwards of 3,000 chronic homeless. It has been reported that 75% refuse city services. Despite Keller’s spending efforts to assist the unhoused, the city’s homeless numbers continue to spike as the crisis worsens and as the unhoused refuse services and as they take over our streets.
The $300 million spent to help 3,000 to 5,000 homeless with 75% refusing services would have gone a long way to finance community centers, senior citizen centers, police and fire substations, preschool or after school programs, senior citizen programs, and police and fire programs.
Keller has allowed the unhoused to proliferate city streets, parks and open space declining to aggressively enforce city and state vagrant laws and make arrests. Keller allowed Corando Park to become the city’s de facto city sanction homeless encampment before he declared it to be the most dangerous place in the state forgetting it was he who sanctioned it and then he was forced to close it down because of out-of-control violent crime and illicit drug use.
A solution to deal with mentally ill and drug addicted homeless people who refuse city services is the initiation of civil mental health commitments by the state to mandate mental health care or drug addiction counseling in a hospital setting after a court hearing determining a person is a danger to themselves or others. Such an approach would get the mentally ill and drug addicted the health care they desperately need and off the streets.
AFFORDABLE HOUSING EFFORTS
Keller’s “ABQ Housing Forward Plan” to increase affordable housing was nothing more than a politcal rues relying on the city’s housing shortage. His original announced goal was for the city to have 5,000 additional affordable housing units to be added to the market by 2025 but he fell short by 3,000. Keller pushed mandating “safe outdoor spaces” approved exclusively by the planning department for the unhoused in all 9 city council districts over objections of neighborhoods. Keller wanted to double or triple the city’s density by allowing casitas and duplex development in existing neighborhoods by eliminating the rights of appeal by objecting to neighborhood associations and adjoining property owners.
Keller’s “Housing Forward Plan” makes gentrification an official city policy that caters to developers and the NAIOP crowd at the expense of neighborhoods and property rights. It will not increase affordable housing. It will allow developers and investors to destroy existing neighborhoods for the sake of making a development buck and increasing density in established neighborhoods and destroying their original character.
Keller also supports recent amendments to the city’s zoning laws know as the Integrated Development Ordinance. Those changes reduce or totally eliminate Neighborhood Associations and adjoining property owners’ rights of standing to appeal developments. In the limited instances where they can appeal a development and they lose the appeal, the changes require them to pay the attorney’s fees of the defending developer when before both sides would assume their own attorney fees and costs.
FAILURE TO HOLD CHIEF MEDINA ACCOUNTABLE
Keller has also refused to hold Chief Medina accountable for a vehicle crash where Medina negligently plowed into another driver putting the driver in the hospital in critical condition. Medina admitted to violating state law when he failed to have his body camera on during an incident that preceded the crash.
After the crash, Keller called Medina “arguably the most important person right now in these times in our city.” Medina’s appointed crash review board declared the crash as “non avoidable” even after Medina admitted to causing the crash. Medina was given a slap on the wrist with letters of reprimand. The City and Medina have been sued by the other driver and the case is still pending and will likely result in a significant judgement being paid for Medina’s negligent driving and his running of a red light. Medina claims he will retire in December and Keller claims he will find a new Chief, but don’t believe them. They are tied to the hip.
FINAL COMMENTARY
Eight years of Tim Keller as Mayor has been more than enough. Simply put, Albuquerque needs a new Mayor. Keller is completing 8 years as Mayor and he is still struggling with the very issues he dealt with 8 years ago: high violent crime rates, drugs, the homeless crisis and a corrupt APD. Things have not gotten any better under his leadership and some would say the city is worse off today than when he was first elected in 2017.
“ANY ONE BUT KELLER” ATTITUDE IS REAL
There exists a serious undercurrent of dissatisfaction with all 7 candidates, especially Mayor Tim Keller. Although City Hall observers and political pundits are saying the election is Keller’s to lose, what they fail to take into account is that what is beginning to emerge is an “any one but Keller attitude”. It can also be called “Keller Fatique” which is what happened with “Chavez Fatique “ when Democrat Mayor Marty Chavez attempted to seek a third consecutive four year term in 2009 and he lost to Republican Richard Berry. Simply put, people want change.
The “any one but Keller attitude” comes into sharp focus when the local news stations publish stories on FACEBOOK where Keller is interviewed at length about his candidacy and literally hundreds of public comments are made that are all negative and berating Keller for his failure to address and solve the city’s problems. Candidates who are running for city council and who are now going door to door to collect nominating signatures and $5.00 for their own candidacies are reporting they are encountering strong anti-Keller sentiment with them being asked questions if they support Keller for reelection.
It is doubtful any of the 6 running against Keller now possess the gravitas to be Mayor. Based upon what they have said and done, they appear not to have a full understanding of the seriousness of purpose of being Mayor, the background nor the credentials necessary to be an effective Mayor. Hope springs eternal that over the course of the four month campaign that one of the six running against Keller will emerge as a viable candidate and succeed in removal of an entrenched politician.
Given the overall dissatisfaction and disappointment with the six candidates running against Keller, and the overall voter dissatisfaction with Keller himself, there is a chance that there will be one or more write in candidates that could take advantage of the “any one but Keller” attitude. It’s fully understood that write in candidacy’s are considered long shots, but given the nature of the times and voter dissatisfaction in general with city hall, success could be achieved by a write in candidate. With the new state law, community leaders, neighborhood associations, civic organizations, activists and those in the business community who are dissatisfied with the 7 candidates now still have the option to recruit one of their own of like mind.
If not, it is likely we will have another 4 years of disastrous policies, either under Mayor Tim Keller as he continues with his disastrous policies or one of the 6 others running against him who will implement their own.