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Unpublished correction: The name of Mukogawa is misspelled in this story.
Spokane voters won't just be electing a mayor when they go to the polls on Tuesday.
They'll also be hiring an ambassador, an administrator, a cheerleader, an advocate and a salesman.
Mostly, though, they'll be choosing a leader. When Spokane switched to the strong mayor form of government last fall, it was viewed by many as a city crying out for leadership. Under 40 years of the council-city manager system, Spokane has had efficient, competent management. What it hasn't had is passion. In John Powers and John Talbott, Spokane has a choice of two men who are united, if in nothing else, by their desire to lead Spokane out of its doldrums.
The race has been fierce and contentious, with tempers often flaring between the two men as they plowed through more than two months of debates, forums, luncheon meetings and breakfast appearances.
It's also been the most expensive race in Spokane history, with $370,000 raised between the two. Almost three-quarters of that, $277,070, has gone to Powers. Talbott, however, has been the beneficiary of political action committees that have purchased a barrage of advertising on his behalf.
Voters, however, won't be making their decision on who is the best fund raiser.
Rather, their decisions will likely involve a range of criteria that adds up to who is best equipped to lead Spokane.
Is it Talbott, a retired Air Force colonel, with the experience of an incumbent but the background of an activist? A leader viewed by supporters as a man of strength and integrity, but by his opponents as an angry zealot, crippling the city in his pursuit of one issue?
Or Powers, a bankruptcy attorney, a political novice with connections across Spokane? A man described as both a charismatic leader with business savvy and an opportunistic huckster, deeply tied to Spokane's elite?
Whoever it is, he will have an unprecedented amount of power over Spokane.
The strong mayor will oversee 2,500 employees, will make all senior-level hiring and firing decision, and will be able to assemble a cabinet of department heads. He will write the city's...