The polls say it's down to a two-person race to fill the big office here at city hall and even after a tiring campaign, those two candidates are still hoping to reach more voters before polls close tomorrow night.
For almost seven months, 11 candidates have worked hard to win over the voters of Fresno. But Tuesday, voters will narrow the field down to two, and the candidates are doing some fancy footwork to make sure they're on the ballot in November. Ashley Swearengin is walking door-to-door, down to the wire, to bring voters into the fold.
Ashley Swearengin, Fresno Mayoral Candidate: "As much voter contact as possible. That's the name of the game. We're calling people today, still walking, and we'll be out tomorrow trying to reach as many people as possible before they cast their votes."
Henry T Perea is casting his voice towards big groups while his staff finishes off the walking.
Henry T. Perea, Fresno Mayoral Candidate: "Over the last couple days, we've had over a few hundred people knocking on doors, making phone calls, doing all grassroots campaigning."
Perea and Swearengin are now clear frontrunners in our Exclusive Action News Poll, conducted by SurveyUSA. Perea leads by seven points overall, and by nine points among voters who cast early ballots. Abc30 Political Analyst Tony Capozzi says it's not likely that another candidate will surge by tomorrow.
Tony Capozzi: "Unless something drastic happens between today and tomorrow, this is what's going to happen. It's going to be Perea and Swearengin."
But for the frontrunners, the die is not cast until the votes are.
Henry T. Perea: "Certainly the only poll that matters is tomorrow, so I hope all our supporters get out there and cast their ballots tomorrow."
Ashley Swearengin: "It's not over til it's over so we'll be pulling out all the stops and doing everything we can."
Both Perea and Swearengin say they're focused on Tuesday, not the November election. But both their campaigns are ready for five more months. Capozzi says, don't be surprised if the campaign turns negative and nasty before November.
