Dale Mallory drops Invisible Man impersonation

Up until this weekend, Dale Mallory had been the most quiet candidate in the history of Cincinnati politics, without a scintilla of evidence that he had any kind of campaign at all in the 32nd Ohio House District.

Then, on Friday, a mail piece touting Mallory's candidacy popped up in the mail boxes of 32nd District voters - the one and only sign that the Cincinnati mayor's brother is doing anything but counting on a surname that has been money in the bank for the Mallory family for most of the past 40 years.

Meanwhile, his Republican opponent, Kim Hale, has, for weeks, had yard signs and billboards sprouting up in every corner of the district like kudzu in Georgia.

Mallory has had a bad year so far - ousted as president of the West End Community Council and under investigation for his $40,000 consulting contract with the Cincinnati Empowerment Corp.

But Mallorys have had a lock on the district for a long time. His father, William Mallory Sr., held the seat for 28 years, followed by Mark Mallory for four years. The seat was out of the family for the past eight years, with Catherine Barrett holding the seat, while Mark served in the Ohio Senate.

Given the track record, maybe one mail piece is all he thinks he needs.