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Monday, November 9, 2009

Election Joe Mallahan Concedes

Posted by Dominic Holden on Mon, Nov 9, 2009 at 5:04 PM

Mallahan concedes defeat while campaign spokeswoman Charla Neuman looks at her BlackBerry

Mallahan concedes defeat while campaign spokeswoman Charla Neuman looks at her BlackBerry

In his mayoral campaign offices on Eastlake Avenue East, Joe Mallahan told a roomful of reporters, "I want to begin by congratulating Mike McGinn on his success. Mike and his team ran a very hard-fought campaign. They should be proud. I wish Mike well as our next mayor."

Mallahan, who had more than three times the money as McGinn and major institutional backing, blames his loss on McGinn's message and “his persistence in staying on message in every neighborhood,” Mallahan said. "He was the superior campaigner this time around."

Asked if he would do anything differently, Mallahan said no, adding, "Mike ran a great campaign too and he beat us." The former T-Mobile executive said, "I'm going to go back to work for the phone company.”

"If I have one regret it is that people came to think of me as a businessman when I am a social justice Democrat with business credentials," said Mallahan, whose campaign ads repeatedly cited his tenure at T-Mobile.

After most reporters left the room, campaign manager Charla Neuman said she thinks Mallahan was "branded as a well-to-do businessman." She added that many voters shared an anti-Nickels sentiment and Mallahnan was branded as a Nickels proxy. She also said voters were looking for change, following Obama's presidential election.

Neuman said that McGinn softening his opposition to the tunnel may have also assisted his victory. "At first I thought Merry Christmas to us," Neuman said. "But then after thinking about it I thought, 'Oh, no. This could really work against us.'"

Comments (19) RSS

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Well Joe, then you should have sounded like something other than a corporate shill.

Posted by Lilting Missive on November 9, 2009 at 5:09 PM

Mallahan drove that perception himself. Ahem. Rookie mistake. Maybe he should have started with a council seat or something, or gotten a better campaign adviser.

Posted by Fnarf

on November 9, 2009 at 5:11 PM

You didn't want to be considered a business man? Well perhaps consistently calling the citizens of this fair city "customers", and defending that term as "what I know" when criticized for it, was your first mistake.

Posted by JoshMahar on November 9, 2009 at 5:18 PM

I find the coverage in the Times to be hilarious; they list a rather long cadré of Mallahan endorsers -- and fail to add themselves to same. Fucking boneheads.

And hey -- is Adrian on suicide watch?

Posted by baconpussy on November 9, 2009 at 5:20 PM

@2: Yep. He was very intent on using the language of the corporate world to describe his qualifications (much to the delight of the Stranger's Election squad), and aggressively pointed out his business world endorsements. If he had played down the jargon, and actually dressed up his pro-business campaigns in the *language* of social justice progressivism, he probably would have walked to an easy victory.

I kinda like McGinn, and voted for him. I have to think this was more Mallahan's loss than McGinn's victory, though.

Posted by Lee on November 9, 2009 at 5:20 PM

I guess I'll have to take your word for it, Joe, since you've barely lifted a finger on behalf of any social justice issues (driving a Prius doesn't count).

Posted by DOUG.

on November 9, 2009 at 5:23 PM

"Social justice democrat"?

Poppycock.

He sold himself as a businessman, associated with the business community, and promoted the big AID type DBT boondogle -- hardly a "social justice" project.

And Pink Oxford cloth button down shirts !

Posted by Jos. A. Banks on November 9, 2009 at 5:28 PM

"AIG"

Posted by Jos. A. Banks on November 9, 2009 at 5:30 PM

The guy who barely lifted a finger lost to the guy who vigorously lifted a finger.

Posted by gloomy gus on November 9, 2009 at 5:31 PM

Dear Joe,

This voter worried that your commitment to social justice was mainly about creating public-works jobs that would spend our tax dollars for the primary benefit of private development and real estate interests.

My worry was reinforced every time you repeated your frustrating non-answer about "moving Seattle forward" in response to questions that deserved nuanced and thoughtful replies. (I think that means you reinforced my worry exactly 1,544 times in the last month of the race.)

If you had demonstrated a credible effort to build trust in your motives, your experience would have been much more to your credit.

Posted by Eric Arrr on November 9, 2009 at 5:35 PM

"I am a social justice Democrat with business credentials."

What an ass. All he ever talked about was T-Mobile and the wonderful things he did there. As far as I know, it was his entire resume.

Posted by Mahtli69 on November 9, 2009 at 5:35 PM

He and his wife also run a very successful yearly bratwurst church fundraiser in Wallingford to provide free space for anti-abortion protest groups to organize and for Ken Hutcherson to give speeches.

Also, he provided free (with contract) mobile-to-mobile calling to any customer regardless of race, gender, ethnicity, or religious affiliation.

Posted by isn't that what social justice means? on November 9, 2009 at 5:51 PM

If you care about social justice, the least you can do is vote. You work up from there.

Posted by elenchos on November 9, 2009 at 5:55 PM

If you cared about social justice, you'd give all poor people access to free, on-demand, no questions asked, convenient abortions with cash prizes, all to help thin their numbers.

Posted by Donald Bradmans on November 9, 2009 at 5:58 PM