Josh Goodman is a former staff writer for GOVERNING..
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Leffingwell Surprises in Austin -- or Not
We've conclusively determined that Ballot Box commenters are better informed than the Associated Press.
On Saturday, Lee Leffingwell took first place in the Austin mayoral race with 47% of the vote. Brewster McCracken, who, like Leffingwell, is on the city council, was a distant second with 27%. The two will meet in a runoff on June 16.
As I noted last week, the Associated Press declared before the election that Brewster McCracken "seems to be leading the pack." Whoops.
In response to that post, a commenter, John Richard, responded:
About the Austin race, I would not consider Brewster McCracken in the lead, by a long shot.
The other candidate, Lee Leffingwell, has the serious insider Democratic support needed to win at this very odd election time.
Brewster actually sent out a mailer around town claiming Lee Leffingwell would introduce parking fees on the street during the late-night hours. This, to me, is extraordinarily desperate as everyone in this city knows that this is a politically anathema idea.
I am not a huge fan of either men as I believe we can have a better progressive candidate than either of them, however, typical of the A.P., their information is flawed and based on half-hearted research, at best.
McCracken is now very much a longshot in the runoff, which has to please the people of St. Louis.
Twitter: @governing
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