Can Jeffersontown Mayor Bill Dieruf end GOP losing streak in run for Louisville mayor?
Bob Heleringer  Opinion contributor  On the evening of May 23, 1969, your humble columnist graduated from Trinity High School at the Louisville Gardens auditorium, an old armory on Walnut Street (since renamed Muhammed Ali Boulevard). A few blocks away from that celebration was City Hall, where Louisvilles mayor may have been turning out the lights in his office. The mayor that year was one Kenneth A. Kenny Schmied, a Republican. He had succeeded another Republican mayor, William O. Bill Cowger who, prohibited by law from running for a second term, had been elected to represent Louisville in Congress. More than 52 years after I received that diploma, Louisville hasnt had another Republican mayor since the end of Schmieds term. The reasons for this drought are many and varied, but as Kentucky gradually became more Republican over the ensuing decades, Louisville and Jefferson County became more solidly Democratic. The GOP came close in 2010 when the mayors office was open with no incumbent running (beginning in 2002, Louisville mayors could succeed themselves for two additional terms). That year featured a spirited contest between Republican Metro Councilman Hal Heiner and his Democratic opponent, businessman Greg Fischer, with Fischer prevailing by a scant 6,872 votes out of more than 150,000 votes cast. Since that narrow defeat, the local Republican Party has been challenged by an increased polarization between a metastasizing Democratic hegemony and a shrinking base buffeted by GOP Gov. Matthew Bevin and President Donald Trump, whose bellicose and extremely off-putting campaign styles and personalities alienated independent voters in this county that may have otherwise been inclined to vote Republican. Despite this daunting history, based on the calamities that have beset Derby City over the past two years, there is every reason to believe that not only will Louisville elect a Republican mayor on Nov. 8, 2022, but that he will have been the actual post-time favorite in the race. Im referring to the chances of William Bill Dieruf Jr. (pronounced DEAR-rough), the current mayor of Jeffersontown, Jefferson Countys largest city outside Louisville (population 32,000), who Wednesday announces his candidacy for mayor of Louisville, throwing his Gaslight Festival hat into the Republican primary for that position. Dieruf is concluding three successful terms as J-towns mayor, a non-partisan office, with an impressive record that bodes well for a successful tenure as Louisvilles next chief executive. Who's in, who's out, who's on the fence:Our way-too-early look at Louisville's mayor race  Despite the handicap of being a St. X graduate, Dieruf obtained an accounting degree from the University of Kentucky and then grew his familys local hardware store and other businesses. In 2000, he won a seat on Jeffersontowns city council. Ten years later, he was elected mayor, defeating an incumbent opponent by a wide margin and was unopposed for two successive terms. His record in office is stellar. Using the healthy tax revenue produced by the citys nearly-100% occupied Commerce Park, Dieruf has initiated popular programs for military veterans, senior citizens, youth sports and public works. His administration hasnt neglected any of the citys most compelling other challenges. Working closely with his former colleagues on the council and his nationally experienced police chief, Rick Sanders, J-towns Angel program for people who are struggling with addiction has proven so successful it has been adopted by over 300 cities state-wide. His Honor has also worked with knowledgeable professionals to address homelessness and early childhood education. Jeffersontown has a nearly 20% minority population and Dieruf hasnt discovered their existence only when theres a problem. Early in his tenure he reached out to minority leadership  at the citys African-American First Baptist Church, the 100 Black Men organization and to his citys vibrant Cuban-American and South Vietnamese communities  to assure them the mayor was always in.  Among political insiders, there is a well-known expression that office-holders are either show horses or work horses. Count Mayor Dieruf among the latter category. This tall, trim, pleasant, low-keyed (remember, hes an accountant!) man sincerely believes that no problem is intractable as long as everyone has a seat at the table and that the shape of that table is always round.  As the immediate past president of the Kentucky League of Cities, Dierufs reputation is known well beyond the 40299 ZIP code including, significantly, in Frankfort, site of the commonwealths Republican-dominated state legislature. He knows how to get a bill passed in the General Assembly (and has gotten them passed), a key advantage sure to be highlighted in the forthcoming campaign. Related:Former 21c Museum Hotels CEO Craig Greenberg announces run for Louisville mayor  Against the backdrop of Louisvilles current malaise with a business community in crisis, with a downtown that is still eerily deserted, with a minority community cursed by the ineptitude of the current administration and a failing public education system, and with fearsome crime statistics led by record homicides, its time for a dramatic change in Louisvilles political leadership. Every voter knows that the real issue on the ballot in next years mayors race is Louisvilles future as a major American city. For the sake of our beloved hometown, I sure hope so. Bob Heleringer is a Louisville attorney and Republican who served in Kentucky's House from the 33rd District from 1980 to 2002. He can be reached at helringr@bellsouth.net.