Crystal Ball

Very quietly, I have been listening to voters, keeping a mental note of trends and who voters are talking about. Saturday morning I decided to take a trip to the polls to see how things are shaping up. When I returned home, I decided to take a look at the ol' crystal ball. The entire picture is certainly not clear yet, but some things are starting to come into focus. Here is what I see right now (for what it is worth).

1. The mayoral race has only 2 horses. I like some of the ideas coming from the Merrill website and in his speach, but there seems to be very little action behind it. Dinwiddie and Jobe vote totals will dwarf Mr. Merrill. Based on the debate this morning on 950 AM and some of the interaction between the 2 candidates, there is no doubt in my mind now that of the 3 candidates, Mr. Dinwiddie is the most prepared to be our next mayor. He is also out working Mrs. Jobe in a big way. Considering where this race started (with Cindy Jobe the clear cut favorite), this is a pretty amazing turn of events. Crystal Ball's guess---Dinwiddie

2. Ward #1 is shaping up to be divided between 3 candidates. Wurth, Cleveland, and Rolfson are active and making an impact. Unless the rest of the pack are about to unveil some kind of huge quiet surprise, I do not see any of them being a huge factor. Crystal Ball's guess---Cleveland 3/31 Update: It would appear from the poll at left and the various emails I have received that either I have severely under-estimated the popularity of an additional candidate (Keith Davis), OR the technical savy of a few people with similar IP Addresses have taken my poll hostage (C'mon folks, if you are going to JUICE a poll, at least place a vote for all wards and the mayor...) Either way, for a Ward that many of us were wondering if there would be ANY candidates in, the race in Ward 1 is shaping up to be somewhat of a dogfight. Crystal Ball's guess remains the same simply because Mr. Cleveland has been knocking on doors all over this city.

3. If Jonathan Duda is defeated in Ward #2 it would truly shock me. I know for a fact that there are quite a few citizens that may be upset with some decision Mr. Duda has made over the past 4 years in his many roles, but when all is quiet in the voting booth, it will be hard to vote against him. There are those that TALK and those that DO. Everyone in the city should be able to agree that Mr. Duda DOES what he says he is going to DO. Our city should be thankful to have him, and he will win handily. Crystal Ball's guess---Duda

4. Ward #3 is without question a 2 man race...David Williford v. Keith Hudson. That is about all that I know. Crystal Ball's guess---Hudson

5. Ward #4 is shaping up to be a nail biter. The issue that I am having is that I am not sure who is running in the Cichoracki camp, Jim or his wife... I expect and appreciate a supportive spouse, but my experience (and from listening at the polls on Saturday), folks tend to be saying the same thing - the most vocal of that pair is by far Diane. Is that what we should come to expect if he were alderman? Having said that, Mr. Hall needs to start talking about himself and not his opponent. If he wants to the the next Alderman of Ward 4, he better be a good closer because this race is starting to slip away from what I am hearing. Crystal Ball's guess---Even.

I will post another poll tomorrow for everyone to vote again to see if you all have a different outcome. I will have some additional information this weekend. Stay tuned...