LISTEN TO VINCENT GRAY:
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Saturday, August 28, I asked D.C. Council Chairman Vincent Gray whether he in fact had a substantial lead in the mayoral race despite press reports showing that he and Mayor Adrian Fenty were close in the polls. The next day, the Washington Post released its long overdue poll showing that Gray leads Fenty 53 to 36 percent among likely voters, a 17 percent lead.I spoke with Gray at the Columbia Heights Day Festival on the soccer field of Harriet Tubman Elementary school (aka “Fenty Field,” due to the mayor’s name being placed prominently in the middle of the field in big letters). Despite taking time for individual voters, Gray’s aggressive press person stopped the WPFW interview less than five minutes in. (This was quite different from my first interview with Gray. Listen to it below.)
Gray discussed his call for civil disobedience in order to dramatize the need for statehood for the District of Columbia; Fenty’s recent last-minute maneuver to expand the electorate by attempting to allow non-Democrats to vote in the Democratic primary; and his recent non-debate on education issues with Fenty, who declined to show up.
If the will of the electorate is reflected in the primary election on September 14th, Vincent Gray will be elected mayor of the District of Columbia by an overwhelming majority. (Of course, that’s a big if. Among other possible problems with the election are the new electronic voting machines and software provided by ES&S, a company with a very spotted record.) Whether Mayor Gray will govern any differently than Mayor Fenty, and Mayor Williams before him, remains to be seen.
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