“Expose Yourself to Art”
Anyone who has lived in Portland for any appreciable amount of time knows the story of Bud Clark. Eccentric tavern owner, best known for this image which is the explanation for the joke “noted art critic”, in 1984 he decided Francis J. Ivancie was getting a free pass to the mayor’s office, so he threw his hat in the ring. He was thought to be a joke candidate. Or, he was thought to be a joke until he won.
The story goes that Ivancie felt his first sense of trouble he was in trouble when the two candidates were both in a parade. The public booed him. The public cheered Clark. Ivancie’s campaign turned negative as it became apparent Clark was on path to victory, as he couldn’t quite believe such a thing was even possible.
Now, here’s an odd thing. Go to the wikipedia article on Bud Clark to the section on that election, and you get this:
In 1984 he ran for mayor because no other candidate would come forward to challenge Francis J. Ivancie. Clark won in the primary with 54.6% of the vote. He was re-elected in 1988 after defeating 11 candidates in the primary and beating former Chief of Police Ron Still in the general.
There is no sense of the election as stunning upset. But go to the wikipedia article on Ivancie and you get this:
In 1983, a coalition of progressive activists in the city, disenchanted with Ivancie’s politics, sought out a challenger to run against Ivancie in the 1984 mayoral election. This was a proposition that local political observers considered unlikely to succeed, given Ivancie’s strong political connections with local business interests, The Oregonian, and organized labor. They found an unlikely candidate in J. E. “Bud” Clark, a local tavern owner and former beatnik. Clark announced his candidacy less than six months before the May 1984 election, but was widely dismissed as a “joke” candidate who had no chance to win the election. However, dissatisfaction among Portlanders was running high – the economy was in recession and crime was on the rise.
In March 1984—two months prior to the election—Clark trailed Ivancie by 35 points in one poll. However, the Clark campaign put together a large number of volunteers who canvassed the city. After an early May poll by The Oregonian showed the race tied, the Ivancie campaign replied with negative advertisements questioning Clark’s religious beliefs (Clark has claimed to be a “born again pagan”). The ads offended Portland voters, who elected Clark to be the next mayor on May 15, by a margin of 13 points.
The story is told, though for the sake of wikipedia needs to be substantiated (easily done if one were up to such a task) and fleshed out somewhat. But it’s told in one candidate’s bio and not the other one. It seems rather significant to both people’s careers.
I suppose I should open up a wikipedia account, but good golly I have no interest in engaging in prolonged article-changing attempts.