'You don't say no to Pinkie'

Cincinnati City Council candidate Laketa Cole speaks at a campaign breakfast held at Greater New Hope Missionary Baptist Church in Avondale Saturday. (Photo by Brandi Stafford/The Cincinnati Enquirer)

Mayoral candidates Mark Mallory and David Pepper began their last Saturday before the election at the annual candidate breakfast in the basement of Avondale's Greater New Hope Missionary Baptist Church, as did nearly 20 council, school board and judicial candidates.

The Greater New Hope breakfast has taken place on the Saturday morning before election day for decades and is organized by Pinkie Williams of nearby Evanston, one of the matriarchs of the African-American church and a long-time political activist.

Church ladies served up heaping plates of scrambled eggs, buttery-flavored grits and spicy turkey sausage to the crowd of about 50 who showed up to listen to a stream of candidates giving three-minute speeches.

"This is one of those events you don't dare miss,'' Mallory said, sitting down dig into his breakfast plate before getting his chance to speak. "You don't say 'no' to Pinkie.''

Donald Jones, pastor of Greater New Hope, said his congregation is one that follows campaigns closely and goes to the polls.

"We believe the people of our church need to be informed and we make sure they are informed,'' Jones said. "And candidates should know that our people vote.''

Juanita Adams, a church member, put it succinctly. "If you want to get elected,'' Adams said, "you have to come through this church.''

While some in the crowd went back for seconds on breakfast, Williams stepped to the front and tried to quiet down the crowd so the speech-making could begin. Nearby, Pepper stood talking to some folks eating at one of the tables, and Williams shot him a mother-is-perturbed look.

"Da-vid,'' she said, glancing his way. Pepper put his hand over his mouth and sat down.

When it was his turn to speak, he talked about his hope that on Tuesday he will be elected along with a council majority that will be in sync with his plans for the city.

"I'm looking forward to Dec. 1,'' said Pepper, referring to the day when the new mayor and council will take office. "I think it's going to be a great day for Cincinnati. A turning point.''

Mallory asked the breakfast crowd if there was any who had yet to make up his or her mind in the mayor's race. Not a single hand was raised.

"Okay, thank you, I'll be going now,'' Mallory said, as the crowd laughed. "Just kidding. I guess I should say something.''

What he said was straight from his standard campaign stump speech - that he is the candidate with experience working with people of other political parties and points of views to solve problems, that he wants to be "the kind of mayor who wants to concentrate on the commonalities that we share and not the divisions.''

-- Howard Wilkinson