So, one of the reasons that I put up this little bit of news yesterday is because I’m quite intrigued by the race for the City Council’s District 7 that is shaping up. Aside from any battle for city attorney, this race to replace City Councilman Jim Madaffer promises to be amazing.
Why?
Marti Emerald, the 10News reporter, has made it pretty clear she’s interested in the job if not wholly committed to running. April Boling, the accountant and former chairwoman of the Pension Reform Committee, long ago confirmed she was aiming for the seat.
As I wrote yesterday, the third major candidate, Johnnie Perkins, dropped out.
So Boling, the Republican, might face Emerald, the Democrat. It’s a district that has been represented by Republicans forever. But Emerald brings celebrity. The Republicans won’t back down easily, but the labor groups and Democrats think they can take the seat. It could be one of those epic battles.
And we’re coming up on the one-year mark. The primary will be June 2008.
So is Emerald running or not? Our news staff wrote a piece on the intrigue of her, as a reporter and celebrity, running for local office. The Union-Tribune’s Gerry Braun did a column on it not too long ago as well. As a reporter, Emerald should make it clear soon if she’s going to run.
From our piece:
“It could become very difficult for the public to understand what role that journalist is playing,” said Al Tompkins, who teaches ethics at the Poynter Institute in St. Petersburg, Fla., where practicing journalists enroll for training. “When I turn on T.V., who am I watching? Am I watching the independent journalist, or am I watching the candidate?”
Fred Brown, a Denver Post columnist and vice chairman for SPJ’s committee on ethics, said Emerald should resign or take a leave of absence as soon as she begins politicking. “Obviously, reporters have the rights to think about these things like everyone else, but in ethical terms, it’s not a good idea,” he said. “She probably should quit her job. No matter what, it’s pretty much a general rule.”
I heard yesterday that Emerald had connected with veteran political consultant Larry Remer. Has she committed to work with Remer?
I called Remer to find out.
“The last time I talked to her, she hadn’t decided whether she was going to run,” Remer said. He added that the last time he had spoken to her was “a few days ago.”
He said he’d love to work for her if she decided to go for it.
“She’d be great for the district,” Remer said.
Remer, ironically, ran Boling’s campaign for the seat in 1993 against incumbent Councilwoman Judy McCarty.
“I really like April. But we really drifted apart politically. I wish her well,” said Remer, whose politics are left-leaning, but he’s worked for several Republicans including Madaffer and Supervisor Ron Roberts.