L OCAL LIVING
District voters guide In D.C., a hard-fought fight to the top
Mayoral race displays disparate styles of Fenty and Gray
by Ann E. Marimow
D.C. Mayor Adrian M. Fenty, who was elected four years ago with a strong showing in all parts of the city, finds himself locked in a competitive race with Council Chairman Vincent C. Gray that has pitted the mayor’s fast-paced, relentless door-to-door operation against the chairman’s more deliberate, big-tent campaign. In television ads and direct mail and at go-go concerts, Fenty has emphasized his administra- tion’s work to improve school test scores, reduce the city’s homicide rate and build parks and recreation facilities. But the mayor’s popularity has dipped significantly since 2006, particularly in the city’s African American communities. His challenge heading into Tuesday’s Democratic primary has been to overcome the perception that he is arrogant and aloof and that he has favored the District’s predominantly white neighborhoods. Fenty, 39, has acknowledged in
interviews and TV ads that he could be more “inclusive.” But he has said that he will not “go back to the ways of the past” when officials refused to make “tough decisions” and “agencies didn’t serve the people.” Aprolific fundraiser, Fenty is on pace to collect more than twice the $2.4million he raised for his primary bid four years ago. But Gray, who was lesser- known outside political circles when he announced his
At the polls
DISTRICT RACES 14 Mayor 15 Council chairman 16 Council/Ward 1 16-17 Council/Ward 3 17-18 Council/Ward 5 18 Council/Ward 6 18-19 Council/At Large 19-20U.S. Representative
20-21 Delegate to the U.S. House of Representatives
www.washingtonpost.com/
localelections Voter information
Polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Tuesday. Anyone who is registered to vote and lives within the precinct in which he or she is registered may cast a ballot. For information, call 202-727-2525 or visit
www.dcboee.us.
About the Guide NIKKI KAHN/THE WASHINGTON POST
D.C. Council Chairman Vincent C. Gray, left, presents himself as consensus-builder who would bridge the city’s divides, and Mayor Adrian M. Fenty focuses on his efforts to improve the school system.
candidacy in March, has gained traction, surpassing the mayor in fundraising for the reporting period that ended last month and winning a long list of endorsements and straw polls. Gray, who was director of the
city’s Department of Human Services during the 1990s, has presented himself as consensus- builder who would bridge the city’s racial and economic divides. Council colleagues have praised Gray, 67, as a collabo- rative leader who has presided over the passage of legislation to
legalize same-sex marriage and medical marijuana and to impose a five-cent tax on plastic bags to help clean up the Anacostia River. Gray, a former Ward 7 council member, has sought to portray Fenty as slow to address the city’s unemployment rate, at nearly 10 percent, which Gray has called a “ticking time bomb.” One of the most polarizing issues of the race has been the question of whether Schools Chancellor Michelle A. Rhee should stay in her position. Gray
was out front in rallying the council in 2007 to approve Fenty’s takeover of the public education system. But Gray has clashed with the administration since then, criticizing Rhee for a lack of transparency in her dealings with parents and in budget writing. Rhee has suggested that she
would cut short her tenure if Fenty is not reelected. Gray has not committed to retaining Rhee if he is elected mayor, saying only
mayoral continued on 15
The Voters Guide was compiled through staff reporting and information provided by the candidates in response to questionnaires from The Washington Post. Each candidate was asked to provide biographical information, a photograph and a brief statement about why voters should elect him or her. Candidates’ responses were edited for style. The Voters Guide does not endorse any candidate.
13 DC
2010
THE WASHINGTON POST • THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2010
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