'Tis the season to endorse.
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You know how they say Christmas comes but once a year?
Yeah, well, they're lying. It also came Nov. 28 for city councilor and mayoral candidate David Coss. That's when the Coss campaign was bestowed with official endorsements from three prominent local politicians neatly wrapped in bows to the Man Who Would (Maybe) Be King (or at least Mayor) of Santa Fe.
Coss says his three wise men-former State Rep. Max Coll and Santa Fe County Commissioners Paul Campos and Jack Sullivan-weren't drawn by yonder star but by their experiences working with Coss during his years in state and city government. The stamps of approval came in advance of the Dec. 6 filing deadline for nominating petitions and marked the most significant public endorsements yet of a mayoral candidate before the March 2006 election.
"I think it's very important for my candidacy because part of my message is that I listen and I work with people to get things done," Coss says. "It was a real honor to have someone like Max Coll stand up and say, 'I've worked with David all these years and I think he would be a fine candidate for mayor.' Same with Paul and Jack."
Coll says it wasn't a difficult decision to endorse Coss. "He is very progressive in his ideas toward things like the environment, the budget and development," Coll says. "Some growth is to be expected but you can't just let it go over the fence. I think he can help bridle that rhinoceros."
Coll is self-deprecating about the impact his endorsement will have on Coss' candidacy but former mayor Sam Pick says corralling that endorsement is akin to finding a white rhino for the Coss campaign, even if Coll doesn't regularly stump for the candidate.
"Coll has been a stalwart in Santa Fe for years. Anybody would like to have him in their camp."
That said, Pick says the Coll endorsement could help other candidates distinguish themselves from Coss in a race has become a free-for-all since incumbent Larry Delgado announced he will not seek a third term.
"The public esteem held for Max Coll certainly isn't going to hurt but I don't think that is going to change the minds of the more conservative voters," Pick says. "Max Coll is ultraliberal and David Coss is ultraliberal. Another candidate who is closer to the center may be more appealing to voters who aren't on the far left wing."
The candidate Pick is likely hinting at is realtor Karen Walker, to whom Pick has already given his endorsement.
"That surprises me," Walker says of the Coss endorsements. "I don't want to speculate on their decision but if I had to guess it would be that they are relying on the perception rather than the reality of [Coss'] ability to accomplish anything."
Walker acknowledges the importance of endorsements but says they can only go so far.
"It is important but I think what's most important is a candidate's ability to get the job done," Walker says. "I don't think any of [the other candidates] could do what I could do in that position. Without picking on anyone in particular, I'm going to let my record say that for me."
Voters won't have the final say for more than three months. In the meantime, Pick says the candidates-virtually all of whom he says are running on similar platforms-will have to scramble to separate themselves from the pack. Between shaking hands and kissing babies, Pick says successfully lobbying for endorsements could become the deciding factor.
"I think the candidate that ultimately wins the race will do so on their own merits," Pick says. "But in a close, wide-open race like this one, a big endorsement could be what tips the scales."
