Editorial: Candidates cross the finish line

Wednesday, June 9, 1999 | 10:18 a.m.

Recent polls indicated Goodman was headed to an easy win. What was extraordinary was that a political novice could deliver such a crushing victory over a veteran politician. But Goodman wasn't the only political newcomer making his mark in Tuesday's municipal elections. Las Vegas City Councilman Gary Reese barely edged 23-year-old Nevada Stupak, winning by just 139 votes out of 8,575 cast. In North Las Vegas, Councilman William Robinson was re-elected, but Paula Brown lost her seat to Planning Commissioner Shari Buck. Only in Boulder City did the incumbents -- Mayor Bob Ferraro and Councilman Bryan Nix -- win comfortably. In the race in which there was no elected official running, Bert Brown won handily in his bid to be a Municipal Court judge.

The other contests were spirited, but it was the Las Vegas mayor's race that provided the sizzle in Southern Nevada. When Goodman filed to run, most seasoned political observers dismissed his chances. After all, his candidacy violated all the rules of modern political campaigning. For starters, no one believed an attorney who has represented mobsters stood any chance of winning. But Goodman's positive campaign and willingness to speak his mind, regardless of the consequences, obviously resonated with a public tired of cautious candidates who prefer to find out which way the political winds are blowing before taking stands on controversial issues. Goodman won a mandate, but now he must quickly prepare for the much more difficult task of governing one of the nation's fastest-growing and dynamic cities. We wish him well.