Former Democratic Rep. Artur Davis is seeking a comeback this year in Montgomery as a Republican
Odd-numbered years don't typically offer many marquee elections, aside from a handful of gubernatorial races and the occasional special election to replace a member of Congress who's either resigned in disgrace or found a more lucrative job on K Street. But look just a little further down the ballot and you'll find that many, if not most, U.S. cities—including all of the largest—elect their mayors in off years.
These mayors are responsible to millions of constituents, control huge budgets, and, with D.C. mired in gridlock, are often responsible for major policy decisions that have immediate impact on our lives. (Over 80 percent of the country now lives in urban areas.) These elections may not get the same attention as the battle for the White House or control of Congress, but they're critically important and many offer the opportunity for progressive ideas—so often blunted at the state and federal level—to make an impact.
With that in mind, Daily Kos Elections presents a look at five of the nation's top mayoral races taking place in 2015, in order of their election dates. We'll be covering these and many more contests for mayor as the year unfolds, so if you don't see your city's race here, please tell us more about it in comments. But without further ado, we'll proceed to the Windy City:
• Chicago, Illinois: Democratic Mayor Rahm Emanuel spent much of 2014 looking very vulnerable for re-election. With gun violence dominating the headlines and a shaky local economy, Rahm (he's almost never identified by his last name, either by friend or foe) continually posted poor approval ratings and often trailed badly in hypothetical matchups. The incumbent will face the voters on Feb. 24, and while nothing is assured, he now looks like he has a good chance to win a majority and avoid an April 7 runoff.
Rahm's main challenger is Cook County Commissioner Jesus "Chuy" Garcia, whom Daily Kos has endorsed. Also running are Alderman Robert Fioretti, businessman Willie Wilson, and a perennial candidate, who are also Democrats. Recent polls have shown Rahm ahead of his rivals, but a bit away from the 50-percent majority he needs to win outright in February. However, the incumbent has far more money at his disposal than any other candidate, and he's been blanketing the airwaves for weeks with positive ads. So far, no major outside groups have countered, allowing the mayor to dominate on television. If this continues, it may be enough to put Rahm over the top in February.
Head over the fold for more 2015 action.
• Anchorage, Alaska: Republican Mayor Dan Sullivan is leaving office, and a crowded race is expected to succeed him. At the moment three notable candidates are running: Republican Anchorage Assemblymember Amy Demboski, conservative independent and former Assemblymember Dan Coffey, and former Anchorage Chamber of Commerce head Andrew Halcro, another independent. Assembly Chair Dick Traini is also a potential GOP candidate. (Former Assemblymember Paul Bauer is also running as a Republican, but he's gained little traction.)
Democrats don't have much of a bench in Alaska, but a popular Democratic mayor would emerge as a credible statewide candidate. For a while former Sen. Mark Begich was considering a run, and Democrats were reluctant to face him. But Begich declined to go for it, and now other Democrats are eying the seat. Former state representative and 2010 gubernatorial nominee Ethan Berkowitz is considering a bid, as are Assemblymember Patrick Flynn and former state Sen. Hollis French. The filing deadline is Feb. 13, so the field will take shape soon. The nonpartisan primary is April 7, and the all-but-certain runoff will be scheduled at a later date.
• Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: Several candidates are facing off in the May 19 Democratic primary, which is usually tantamount to election in the City of Brotherly Love. State Sen. Anthony Williams has the most cash of anyone and has some rich allies backing him up; Williams is also the most notable African-American candidate here.
Former District Attorney Lynne Abraham hasn't raised as much, but she looks like the contest's other frontrunner. However, former Councilor Jim Kenney just got into the race, and his ties to labor could allow him to carve out a niche. Former Judge Nelson Diaz and former mayoral aide Doug Oliver are also in, but they have far less resources available than the rest of the field. City Controller Alan Butkovitz and businessman Sam Katz have also talked about running, with Katz mulling seeking this post as an independent. The filing deadline isn't until March 10, so there's still time for candidates to enter. There's no runoff here, so a simple plurality is all that's needed to take the critical Democratic nod in May.
• Montgomery, Alabama: The mayoral race in Alabama's capital city usually doesn't attract much outside attention, but this time we have a very familiar candidate trying to make a comeback. Former Rep. Artur Davis was once a rising star in the Alabama Democratic Party and an early ally of Barack Obama. But when Davis ran for governor in 2010, things started to go wrong for him. Davis tacked hard to the right to appeal to conservative general election voters but alienated his own party in the process, and lost the Democratic primary 62-38. Davis soon left Alabama for Northern Virginia and became a Republican, and even thought about running for Congress from the Old Dominion in 2013.
But Davis soon moved back to Montgomery and began to prepare for a mayoral campaign. Davis was likely operating under the assumption that Republican Mayor Todd Strange would retire, but Strange announced in January that he'd seek another term. Davis decided to go ahead with his plans anyway, and is trying to unseat Strange in the Aug. 25 nonpartisan race. There's little reason to think that Strange is particularly vulnerable, and Davis may be a flawed messenger in any case. While he hails from Montgomery, he never represented any of the city during his eight years in Congress. Davis' denunciation of Obama may also alienate Democrats, who would probably prefer the low-key Strange in any case. We'll see what happens this summer, but Davis will need a lot to go right if he wants to regain elected office.
• Houston, Texas: We have a very crowded open-seat contest in the nation's fourth largest city this November. Democratic state Rep. Sylvester Turner looks like the early frontrunner, sporting a good-sized war chest and a base of support in the African-American community. But Turner is no shoo-in, and it looks like he's about to attract a very formidable rival. Democratic Harris County Sheriff Adrian Garcia would need to resign his post to seek the mayor's office, but he's been preparing for a run behind the scenes, and it would be a huge surprise if he doesn't go for it. If Garcia wins, he'd become the city's first Hispanic mayor.
There are plenty of other people eyeing this post. Former Rep. Chris Bell, who was the 2006 Democratic gubernatorial nominee, is running. Another notable candidate is Councilor Oliver Pennington, who has good ties to the city's small but not insignificant Republican base. Other notable candidates include City Councilor Stephen Costello, former United Airlines Executive Joe Ferreira, 2013 candidate Ben Hall, former Kemah Mayor Bill King, and former USAID Director Marty McVey. One other potential candidate to watch is Republican County Treasurer Orlando Sanchez, who has sought this office before. Sanchez would probably give Republicans their best chance at a pick-up here, but he'd also need to resign his seat to run. The nonpartisan primary is Nov. 3. In the likely event that no one takes a majority, a December runoff will be held later.