Kickin' it Off with Funkhouser

We dropped by the campaign kick-off party for Mark Funkhouser last night. Usually, such affairs are stuffy and awkward, with lousy speeches, false adulation and people struggling to see and be seen with the "right" people.

Mark's kickoff was simply a good party. There was a basket for donations, but nobody applying pressure. A good blues band rocked the stage, and the crowd was a diverse group of people having a good time. He had fraternity brothers in from college days, from cities all over the country. It takes a pretty good guy to attract that kind of loyalty. There were people from different neighborhood groups, and lawyers from the largest firms. The food was good, the beer was cold, and crowd was enthusiastic.

With so many candidates, it's hard to predict how the race will go. Funkhouser has great name recognition, and widespread support. A lot of that support is spread throughout the community in places you might not expect to find it - nonprofits managed by MPA grads who studied under him, people who appreciate the solid work he did as city auditor, and business people who share his concern that the city have a fiscally sound approach toward development. I think he stands a solid chance of emerging from the primary with a plurality victory, and then the general will depend on who he's facing.

Whatever happens, Mark has started his campaign off with a fresh perspective and a good party. So far, so good.