Publicola got a copy of the results of retiring city council member Jan Drago’s robo-poll, and things look pretty damn good for a Drago run: the veteran council member beats unpopular mayor Greg Nickels in a side-by-side lineup 45 to 24. Other interesting stats from the poll: 70 percent of voters have a negative impression of Nickels; just 23 percent approve of him; and if the election were held today, just 15 percent would vote to reelect him. Nickels’s unpopularity, combined with the fact that Drago would be the only well-known woman in a mayoral field that currently includes five men (the other woman in the race, pro-viaduct activist Dorli Rainey, is a political unknown) will make Drago a formidable opponent if she runs.

UPDATE: Nickels’s campaign spokesman, Sandeep Kaushik, responds, pointing out that Drago only gave Josh a partial list of poll responses (responses that didn’t include, for example, a head-to-head lineup between all seven candidates). Kaushik also points out that the numbers above refer to the “informed horse race”—that is, responses voters gave after receiving positive information about Drago, such as the fact that she would be the first female mayor in 80 years, the fact that she pushed for dog parks, and the fact that she has served on the city council for 16 years. Personally, I’m not convinced that those factors matter all that much; the fact that she’s a woman is obvious; many of the details about her long political career are widely known; and her “anybody-but-Nickels” is evident in Nickels’s low approval ratings. Yes, other candidates might be able to beat him, too, but Drago has at least a small leg up—in the form, as mentioned above, of experience, name recognition, and gender.

18 replies on “Mayor Drago?”

  3. Drago was the one who said the snowstorm wasn’t so bad because she got around in her 4-Wheel Drive just fine. Do you want that kind of myopia in City Hall. I’d rather write in nobody.

  5. That poll said more about Nickels than Drago. Seriously, other than the fact that she’s a woman what differentiates Drago from Nickels (both support the tunnel, both drive SUVs, both are talented politicians, you get the point)? While she’s been pretty effective at pushing her agenda behind the scenes in City Hall, does she really inspire anyone?

  8. Didn’t somebody around here recently report that Drago took a long, expensive junket at taxpayers’ expense?

  13. I actually mostly like Nickels, but I’d vote for Drago over any other candidate (except Dan, if he ran and wouldn’t resign).

  14. It is kind of amazing to watch Nickels accumulate so many negatives in his quest for total domination that he is essentially unseating himself.

  15. Update on the Update:
    How to track the Stranger-Sandeep-Publicola-Josh Fart relationships:

    Not only is Josh in a business relationship with Sandeep but both of them have been on the payroll of Team Nickels.

    Remember how Josh Fart used to rail against Team Nickels? Well, after getting fired from The Stranger, Josh went to work for Mass Transit Now, which was run by Team Nickels, as a PR flak. Josh was paid thousands of dollars for his labor. Thanks, Mr. Mayor!

    You can look it up Josh’s payments under Mass Transit Now
    http://www.pdc.wa.gov/QuerySystem/advanc…

    A guy has to make a living, but Josh Fart has long made a living describing people as hypocrites and phonies. Till he was fired from The Stranger. Then he went begging to Team Nickels.

    The cross currents of Josh Feit’s friendships and financial dealings with those he covers may leave one dizzy, so here’s a point of clarity. Josh Feit got fired from The Stranger for good reasons.

    Readers, beware.

  18. @17: I like that this person’s otherwise rather important criticism about conflicts-of-interest (am I the only one who sees serious credibility problems with publicola due to the whole “sandeep works for the mayor but can totally be objective!” rap? I can’t be…) is totally destroyed by calling him “Josh Fart” throughout. I am still laughing.

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