Race the unspoken factor for Katz, Street

Beneath the polite veneer of policy statements and TV ads, the election may come down to skin color. Beneath the polite veneer of policy statements and TV ads, the election may come down to skin color.Fourth in an ongoing series analyzing the critical issues of the Philadelphia mayor race. They don't talk about in their ads. They don't mention it in their speeches. And their campaign managers are certainly loath to discuss it. But simmering beneath questions about vouchers and wage taxes, economic development and welfare reform, the color of the mayoral candidates' skin is sure to play a part in next week's election. According to a recent poll, 67 percent of white voters are planning to vote for Republican Sam Katz, who is white, while 66 percent of black voters will opt for Democrat John Street. "Race is the going to be the best single predictor of how people vote," Penn Political Science Professor Jack Nagel said. Street is an African American running in a city that has only elected one black mayor in its history. But the Democratic contender has avoided discussing race and has stressed his longtime commitment to city government and his plans to carry on outgoing Mayor Ed Rendell's legacy. "No, [race] isn't a concern for us," said Street spokesperson Ken Snyder, who added that people will vote for Street because he is a "working class neighborhood guy." Meanwhile, Katz has posed a major challenge to Street with an aggressive campaign that has skillfully avoided the term Republican and has focused on his plans to promote economic development and cut the city's wage tax. Katz's party-free strategy has earned him support from a wide range of groups across the city, including endorsements from some of the city's prominent black leaders -- leaders that were expected to back Street. Jerry Mondeshire, the head of the local chapter of the NAACP, all but endorsed Katz during a radio talk show last month. And Democrat John White -- a well-known local politician and old friend of Street who lost to him in the primaries last spring -- backed Katz last month. The White endorsement was a huge boost to the Katz campaign, effectively signaling to Democrats that they could vote for a Republican and to African Americans that they could vote for a white politician. Street's campaign has brushed off the significance of the endorsements, trumpeting instead endorsements by Rendell and President Clinton, who is scheduled to visit Philadelphia on Friday to support Street. But Street currently lacks the kind of support that carried the only previous black mayor, Wilson Goode, to victory in 1983 and 1987. Goode had the support of every major African-American leader in the city and relied on strong support from voters of all races. "Goode had substantial white support," Nagel said, adding that "a black candidate can get significant white support." Still, each candidate says that race will not be a deciding factor on Election Day and that issues will, instead, decide who wins City Hall. "The only people who have talked about race is the press," Katz spokesperson Bob Barnett said, adding that, ultimately, "Sam Katz has people from every neighborhood and John Street has people from every neighborhood."

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