Torry tips his hand; Howard holds his cards

DA to hire pros for mayoral campaign in first signal that he plans to run, while Gentry faces scant funding results

Email | Print By Ken Whitehouse

Torry Johnson (left) and Howard Gentry

Informed sources have confirmed this morning to NashvillePost.com that District Attorney General Torry Johnson is in final negotiations to secure the services of two major political consulting firms. This move further increases the odds that he will be throwing his hat in the ring in the race to succeed outgoing Mayor Bill Purcell.

Democratic media consultant David Dixon and pollster Fred Yang will reportedly sign on with Johnson early next week.

Dixon is well-known to Nashville politicos due to his work on both Purcell's first mayoral campaign and Congressman Jim Cooper's elections. Purcell's famous "desk" ad (video here) and a spot featuring the Cooper children (video here) have been the standard by which local political ads have been judged in the past few years. Dixon produced both.

Fred Yang is known to local political insiders for his work on Gov. Phil Bredesen's campaign as well as others.

What is interesting about the hiring of the two is that Johnson will be bringing on board key members of both Purcell and Bredesen's political "brain trusts," two men who are often considered rivals.

Meanwhile, several sources have told NashvillePost.com that Vice Mayor Howard Gentry was taken aback by the fundraising numbers posted this week by mayoral rivals Buck Dozier and Bob Clement.

NashvillePost.com reported Wednesday that Metro Councilman At-Large Buck Dozier has almost $200,000 in his campaign coffers, while former Congressman Bob Clement has a little over $300,000 on hand.

In contrast, Gentry apparently has told several individuals that he has raised approximately $50,000.

Several attempts to reach Gentry since Wednesday have been unsuccessful.

Should Gentry post financial figures that are far less than than what Clement and Dozier have raised, his campaign will have a major hurdle to overcome in convinicing potential contributors that he is a viable contender.

Some political watchers have speculated that Gentry has not spoken publicly about his finances since his rivals first reported because he is in high gear trying to break the $100k mark by Monday's disclosure deadline.

Gentry, the first African-American elected countywide in Davidson County, is widely respected for his tenure at Tennessee State University and the nonprofit organization for which he is CEO, Backfield in Motion, as well as his work on the Metro Council. He will need to capitialize on that good will quickly if he plans on staying in the mayoral race.