Radical Mayor fights off challenge

Press, 15 August 1978, Page 9

Radical Mayor fights off challenge

i NZPA Cleveland ! Dennis Kucinich, at 31, the youngest big-city Mayor in America, has narrowly defeated an effort to remove him from office in the first! recall-election in Cleveland’s! history. There were 60,308 votes for keeping Mr Kucinich, to 60,032 for the motion to re-' call the Mayor in Sunday’s: ballot. “There will be a recount,” :

i said William Sullivan, a Cleveland city councilor and lone of the leaders of the re-’ i call movement. “The vote •(definitely shows that Mayor 11 Kucinich does not have I much of a mandate from the ' I people.” '( Mr Kuchinich’s political! | life was put on the line only! nine months after he took] ■ over city hall and began a; term in office that has bsen( constantly clouded with con-! ■ troversy. - Hard campaiging by Mr ! Kucinich, who said he would' ■ not be a lackey to the “fat cats” in the city’s political! and business circles, appar-! ently paid off. I Mr Kucinich faced an op-' position that included nearly; ‘ every powerful interest: group in the city — most labour unions, the corporate community, the City Countil, i both daily newspapers, and even his own Democratic Party. Mr Kucinich had numerous spats with the council and had antagonised most labour leaders. But the incident that sparked the recall bid was the firing last March 24 of the police chief.