With a looming Friday deadline to declare candidacy in the upcoming special mayoral election to be held July 26, Democratic hopefuls seem to have conceded to the overwhelming popularity of Councilmember Donna Frye, who was first to announce her candidacy following Dick Murphy’s resignation in April. With nigh a day left to file with the city clerk, speculation continues as to whom may yet throw their chapeau into the ring. Two formidable Republican candidates have weighed in: former Police Chief Jerry Sanders and former Nevada legislator Steve Francis.

Democrats are either thrilled or up in arms. Thrilled that long-time activist and arguably rightful mayor Donna Frye is the Democratic front-runner. Up in arms with the Democratic Party for failing to deliver a winning candidate encompassing the necessary qualifications and crossover appeal to capture the middle and win in a likely run-off.

Who can blame Democratic heavyweight contenders for backing down? From the beginning there has been an almost unspoken consensus among the party that this is Donna’s race. And to impede on the rightful heiress to the throne – essentially splitting the vote and spoiling the election – would be damaging and unpopular. Drop Ron Roberts a line and he’ll tell you all about it.

Then there’s the City Council connection: Anyone who has served on the council in the last decade would be painted a coconspirator to the underfunding of the pension fund – eliminating a slew of potential Democratic candidates.

But can Frye win, and more importantly, do we want her to? A recent community fundraiser for the Democratic Party held at the home of Bruce Abrams demonstrates that the GLBT community isn’t so sure. Comprised mostly of business leaders, the majority lambasted Democratic Party Chair Jess Durfee for procuring only Frye – insisting their must be someone else. At one point, a member began discussing the likelihood of forming a GLBT coalition to support a moderate Republican, while another proclaimed he would donate 10 times the amount to whoever is likely to oppose her.

Imagine a bunch of liberal Democrats sitting around plotting to support a Republican candidate when Donna Frye – big freakin’ liberal and 100 percent on our issues – has a chance of being elected mayor. Haven’t we been waiting over 20 years for this moment? Evidently we aren’t alone. Ray Drew from Drew Consulting hired by the Democratic Party added that this is exactly the feedback he has been getting throughout the county: Is this all there is? Can’t you find someone else? Where are the other choices?

Why are we turning our nose up at Frye? Well, many believe Donna can’t win. She’ll capture enough votes in the special election to advance, but in a run-off, she’ll lose in a Republican town where the next mayor could mean the difference between bankruptcy and economic turnaround. Donna represents the unknown: An Aguirre-like wild card that could shake up City Hall until it crumbles to the ground. Without the experience required to run a billion-dollar enterprise like San Diego, at a time when the city has a credibility issue, it will be difficult for outsiders to take her seriously, especially given her surfer-chick legacy. Another Donna disclaimer is her lack of autonomy from unions. How will she effectively coddle businesses while pandering to the city unions that are the backbone of the Democratic Party?

Despite these disqualifiers, she does represent real change – an opportunity to approach city government from a totally new direction. She’s viewed as a true public servant serving interests of not just the machine, but of citizens. Immune from corruption and a longstanding proponent of open government, can Donna pull it off? With pros and cons side-by-side, she is neither the obvious choice nor a clear bust.

Frye is due to speak at the San Diego Democratic Club’s mayoral forum tonight. We have yet to hear from her any real solutions to the woes plaguing our city, specifically the $1.4 billion pension fund deficit. In order to garner the GLBT community’s support, she needs to tackle these issues head on, with resolve, and prove to us that our vote is for more than just a refreshing new philosophy on city governance.

Our community has a responsibility to listen beyond Frye’s stances on issues like same-sex marriage and the Boy Scouts land lease, and determine whether she indeed has answers to the most important questions of the day. If she can’t convince our community, how will she ever capture the city?