Campaign in Fenty's Ward 4 Backyard

DURING HIS CAMPAIGN for D.C. mayor, Adrian Fenty had two BlackBerries: one for campaign-related communication, the other to deal with constituent concerns back in Ward 4.

His careful attention to the needs of his home neighborhood of Crestwood and places like Brightwood, Manor Park, Petworth, Takoma and Shepherd Park earned him high marks across Ward 4. But with a very competitive, very crowded race to fill his former D.C. Council seat heating up, it might come as a surprise that only one of the candidates fully supports the mayor's plan to take over D.C.'s public schools. And that person, Muriel Bowser, is Fenty's chosen successor, benefiting from $200,000 in campaign cash from the Fenty machine.

As The Post's Elissa Silverman and Yolanda Woodlee report, at a political forum earlier this week, many candidates are vocally opposed to the mayor's schools plan while others are on the fence. Echoing sentiments in Ward 7, which also has a vacant council seat, some want formal consideration of the takeover plan pushed back until after the special election.

» "Fenty's School Takeover Plan Gets Rough Reception" [WaPo]

Photo by Dudley M. Brooks/The Washington Post