What’s most remarkable about mayoral write-in candidate and current city councilwoman Donna Frye is not her apolitical charm or her surfer-chick affability, but the simple fact that she actually has a shot (albeit a long one) at being elected. This says more than a little about the state of affairs in San Diego, but it also speaks volumes about Frye’s qualifications for the position of mayor.
The only Democrat running in what was to be a runoff race between Mayor Dick Murphy and County Supervisor Ron Roberts, Frye champions government’s chief purpose: to serve constituents openly and honestly — very much in contrast to the way many people now see the city being run.
Frye is undeniably the candidate for San Diego environmentalists and social liberals, but also, perhaps surprisingly, for fiscal conservatives. She was the first councilmember to publicly criticize pension underfunding and was alone in her vote against awarding more pension benefits this year. She also realizes, responsibly, that the city cannot afford major infrastructure projects like a new downtown library or a stadium for the San Diego Chargers.
More importantly for San Diego’s collegiate community, though, Frye recognizes the need for more affordable housing and favors incentive-based programs to point developers in this direction. In March, she helped pass a “Tenant’s Right to Know” ordinance that specified the grounds under which longtime tenants can be evicted, and her ideas on transit — including public transportation and traffic-signal synchronization — are the most well-developed and commuter-friendly of any of the candidates.
Conservation issues have been Frye’s strongest calling in her four years on city council, and on this issue she most definitely has her opponents beat. Even Murphy’s environmentally sound record, which earned him the Sierra Club’s endorsement when the race was a two-man battle, pales in comparison to Frye’s, which includes successful bids for runoff monitoring, healthier beaches and cleaner water.
Indeed, the overall quality of life for San Diegans seems to factor more into Frye’s candidacy than Roberts’ and Murphy’s combined. Throughout the race, the two Republicans have been trading petty blows over the city’s financial quandaries and each other’s leadership qualifications. However, it has been Frye who, in less than a month of candidacy, has shown the right combination of self-assurance and idealism that qualifies a real leader — a welcome sign for a city suffering from politics-as-usual. Write-in Donna Frye for Mayor.
