Congratulations to former NBA All-Star Kevin Johnson, who finished first in the nonpartisan Sacramento mayoral primary and appears to be the favorite in the runoff election in November:
With 99 percent of precincts reporting, Johnson was leading incumbent Heather Fargo 47 percent to 40 percent. Five lesser-known challengers split the rest of the vote. ...
The hometown hero returned to Sacramento in 2000 after playing 12 seasons with the Phoenix Suns to launch redevelopment projects and turn his former high school into a charter school with ambitious goals.
He said he became disillusioned with the city's leadership and bureaucracy, frustrations that prompted his run for mayor. The rough-and-tumble of a high-stakes political campaign has proved far scrappier than any NBA matchup he was part of, Johnson said.
For what it's worth, Sacramento is only about 15 percent black and has never had an African American mayor. Now if former Johnson teammate and friend-of-TNR Charles Barkley would just get his act together and run for office...
--Josh Patashnik