Mayor Files Paperwork for Reelection

D.C. Mayor Adrian M. Fenty filed paperwork Friday with the Office of Campaign Finance for Fenty 2010, his reelection campaign committee, signaling his intent to run again with more than two years remaining in his term.

Fenty (D), who raised a record $3.8 million for his mayoral campaign in 2006, will now be able to raise money for his reelection effort, and his early filing could be aimed at discouraging potential challengers. D.C. Council Chairman Vincent C. Gray (D) and council member Kwame R. Brown (D-At Large), who appears likely to win a second four-year term Nov. 4, have been mentioned as potential rivals. Gray has denied any interest in the job, and Brown has said he is focused on his reelection.

A former council member, Fenty launched his first mayoral bid in 2004, two years before the election, and his marathon door-to-door campaign led many other candidates to adopt a similar retail politics strategy. As mayor, Fenty has held a news conference nearly every day, usually in the community, to maintain his visibility.

At a rally for supporters of Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama in the District yesterday, Fenty said he filed for reelection because "it's always good to start as early as humanly possible." Asked whether he would go door-to-door again, Fenty declined to disclose his strategy. "We'll do whatever we need to do," he said.