Dylan Brogan
Mayor Paul Soglin at a July news conference, where he announced he wouldn't be running again. On Oct. 19, he declared that he'll run afterall.
Madison Mayor Paul Soglin had all but endorsed former Ald. Satya Rhodes-Conway to succeed him. In July, he declared Rhodes-Conway “superior in every way” to the other candidates running for mayor in 2019 and said he would not be seeking reelection.
Yeah, about that.
On Friday, Soglin did an about-face — announcing that he would seek a ninth term as mayor after all.
“It doesn’t change anything. This city still needs new leadership,” Rhodes-Conway tells Isthmus. “Mayor Soglin has had a lot of terms. And I think it’s time for different perspectives.”
With over 22 years at the city’s helm, Soglin is the ultimate incumbent in what was shaping up to be the first open-seat mayoral election in decades. In 2019, Soglin will face seven opponents telling voters it's time for a change. The gloves are already coming off.
Madison equity coordinator Toriana Pettaway, who announced she was running for mayor in September, says she knew Soglin would change his mind back in July when he announced he wouldn’t be running.
“I predicted this. I know his character. He’s too arrogant not to run. He doesn’t deem any of us competent,” says Pettaway. “I’ve seen him say these things about many people. It’s part of the reason I’m running. I can’t stand it.”
In July, Soglin described Rhodes-Conway as “eminently qualified” for the city’s top post. Pettaway says the mayor’s decision to run again is a betrayal and speaks to his character.
“It’s egregious. That’s a slap to her campaign. To say you aren’t running and just go back on your word,” Pettaway says. “If I was [Rhodes-Conway], I would be furious.”
Pettaway also says it was disrespectful for Soglin to issue a statement to media on July 12 criticizing Ald. Maurice Cheeks for his “personal ambition” after the alder announced his bid for mayor.
“Does he not remember his ambition to lead when [Soglin] was even younger than [Cheeks]?” Pettaway says. “We all bring different skill sets to the table. [Soglin] doesn’t get to say who is and isn’t qualified. He’s a relic. Welcome to the competition.”
First elected mayor in 1973 at the age of 27, Soglin has served three separate stints leading the city. His second time in office ran from 1989 to 1997. He ousted two-term incumbent Mayor Dave Cieslewicz in 2011 to start his third and current stint. In his last election in 2015, he won in a landslide with 72 percent of the vote.
In July, Soglin said his tenure as mayor was coming to a close. At the time, he was seeking the Democratic nomination for governor.
“I guess I always felt that six to eight years in this office is long enough — at one time,” Soglin said at the July 17 press conference. “I can assure you there will not be a third sequel.”
A month later, Soglin placed seventh out of eight candidates in the Aug. 14 primary won by state schools Superintendent Tony Evers. Even in the city where his mustache is legendary, Soglin placed just sixth among Madison voters.
The mayor released a 3:44-minute-long video on Oct. 19 to launch his reelection campaign. At the end, he addresses the elephant in the room.
“Why have I changed my mind?” Soglin asks in the video. “Turns out, I was wrong about being up for another campaign.”
Soglin tells Isthmus he’s running for mayor again because “there’s still work to be done.”
“All I can say is what I’ve heard the last couple of months. [People] want me to continue for four years,” Soglin says. “If that hadn’t been there, I wouldn’t have changed my decision.”
The mayor says the flood crisis the city faced in August is one reason he’s running again. He’d like to see through infrastructure improvements to help mitigate future flooding.
“The public’s positive reaction to the city’s response [to the flooding] did have some influence over my decision,” says the mayor.
Soglin would also like to usher in the opening of the city’s public market and work on such climate change initiatives as converting the Madison Metro bus fleet to electric and solar power. He also finds the possibility of working with a Democratic governor “refreshing” after eight years of Gov. Scott Walker.
Additionally, Soglin wants another four years in office to preserve his legacy. He says he needs the time to get his initiatives “firmly institutionalized.”
“When I left office in 1997, we were really making good strides in regards to disparities and equity and there was a lot of data showing we were closing gaps in the economy and, working with the school district, academic performance,” Soglin says. “For example, we had good results in terms of lowering African American infant mortality rates. And then it all kind of fell apart under subsequent administrations. That is really unfortunate.”
Former Ald. Scott Resnick was Soglin’s general election opponent in 2015. He warns the candidates running in 2019 not to underestimate the 73-year-old mayor. Soglin has never lost a reelection race while mayor.
“One of the things to understand about Paul is he’s a fighter. He’s very strategic and disciplined,” says Resnick. “During my campaign, we identified issues we thought he was entirely vulnerable on one year out. Slowly, we watched him put out messages and offer initiatives to address those issues. It was like he was checking off boxes on a list.”
Resnick says it’s also a challenge running against an opponent with nearly 100 percent name recognition.
“He doesn’t take anything for granted. And he tries to ensure that polarizing, hot button issues don’t arise during [the campaign],” Resnick says. “But even Paul hasn’t run for a third [consecutive] term and that’s a challenge for incumbents in many political offices. [Cieslewicz] wasn’t able to win a third term even though most folks would say he was pretty popular heading into the 2011 race.”
The election for mayor in 2019 is already being framed as a referendum on Soglin. Environment advocate Raj Shukla, who announced he was running in July, says the race is about whether “what Madison has been doing is good enough.”
“We have to decide whether soaring housing prices make a community stronger. If a transit system that’s nearing the breaking point will help with future growth. We get to decide if we’ve made enough investments for real solutions to combat social and racial inequities,” Shukla says. “The whole rationale for my campaign is no, it hasn’t been enough. We can do more and we can do better. We have everything we need in this community to take on really difficult challenges. We just need the leadership to do it.”
Cheeks declined to be interviewed. But his campaign manager, Brita Olsen, sent over a statement.
“This race is about the leadership of our changing city that offers fresh vision and a plan to promote economic opportunity for all,” writes Cheeks.
Former school board member and Madison firefighter Michael Flores, who announced he was running for mayor in September, is on a 24-hour shift at the firehouse and couldn’t comment while on duty.
Rhodes-Conway is critical of Soglin’s unsuccessful efforts to create a bus rapid transit system. She says the city has been “talking about it for over 30 years” with no progress.
“Why is that? I think it comes back to leadership. I think it comes back to political courage,” says Rhodes-Conway. “I think it comes back to not waiting around for the federal or state government to do something for us but moving forward on what we need to do for ourselves.”
Soglin fires back that Rhodes-Conway is being “totally unrealistic” and is attacking city staff.
“We can’t afford to do this solely funded by the city. Let’s get real about this,” Soglin says. “That was part of the problem, still is a problem, that we see with the city council. This belief that there is an unlimited supply of money and we can go as deep into debt as we care to without consequences.”
Former Ald. Brenda Konkel, also running for mayor, says when it comes to Soglin, “it’s his way or the highway most times.”
“Paul is systematically reducing the power of committees, the size of committees, reducing the number of people involved in making this city great and inclusive," Konkel says. “He helped build that system initially and now it’s going away. That kind of top-down approach is not how I would do things.”
“Top-down?” Soglin counters. “Anyone who is familiar with how I manage wouldn’t say that.”
The mayor cites the city-sponsored public market as an example of a project he championed where he didn’t call all the shots.
“I made a commitment to have a responsive public market with concern for the cost of nutrition. The [location] I preferred is not where we ended up,” Soglin says. “The process took us somewhere else. That’s how the system is supposed to work.”
Mayoral candidate and comedian Nick Hart — who promises that there will be a “reckoning” if elected — thinks “it’s great” Soglin has jumped into the race.
“It’s inspired me to maybe leave the mayoral race and run for supreme leader,” jokes Hart. “But in all seriousness, who didn’t see this coming?”
