ONE DOWN:
The March 2006 mayoral race is expected to be crowded. But one previously mentioned candidate says voters won't see her name on the ballot. Muni Judge Frances Gallegos, this week, announced she won't be running. Gallegos had announced several months ago that she was considering jumping into the race. Announced contenders include realtor Karen Walker and City Councilor David Coss. Sitting Mayor Larry Delgado hasn't announced if he'll run for a third term.
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Gallegos says now she believes she is better suited to stay in municipal court. "I was really concerned about what was going on with City Hall," Gallegos says about her thought to run for mayor. "I was thinking, 'I'm going to go out there and save the world.'" But, she says, she wants to ensure the programs she's initiated at City Court continue and she wasn't sure whomever chosen to replace her would share her commitment to those programs, which include a variety of alternative sentencing initiatives. Gallegos, whose last run for re-election was particularly contentious, and who has come under fire from the State Judicial Standards Commission for ethics violations, says the prospect of another tough political race didn't enter into her decision not to run for mayor. "I think that comes with the territory," she says. Rather, she says, she came to the conclusion that she's not the right person for the job."I feel like the councilors are like the Eight Northern Pueblos, each looking out for their own territory. It's going to take someone with leadership to bring them together for the good of the city. I just don't think I have that kind of miracle-making quality. I don't think I'm the person."
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