FORMER COUNCIL MEMBERS. AMONG TODAY’S EARLY VOTERS, A CLIFTON COUPLE, BOB ON THE LEFT, KATHY ON THE RIGHT, CASTING BALLOTS AS CONTROVERSY SWIRLS OVER THE FATE OF POLICE CHIEF TERRY. BOB TELLS ME IT’S NOT SWAYING HIS DECISIONS ABOUT WHO TO VOTE FOR. I ASKED HIS WIFE IF IT’S A FACTOR FOR HER. IT IS. I THINK THAT SHE’S DONE A PRETTY GOOD JOB, BUT I KNOW THAT, YOU KNOW, A LOT OF TIMES PEOPLE ARE LOOKING FOR SCAPEGOATS OR WHAT CAN WE DO? WHAT CHANGES DO WE NEED TO MAKE? THE LIST OF CANDIDATES ON THE BALLOT FOR CINCINNATI COUNCIL RUNS TO 26. THE TOP NINE VOTE GETTERS WILL SERVE. WE’RE NOT SEEING A SPIKE. BASED ON RECENT NEWS STORIES. THE PROJECTION IS THAT JUST UNDER A QUARTER OF THE 217,000 REGISTERED CITY VOTERS WILL MARK BALLOTS THIS FALL. DENISE SMITH IS NOT ONE OF THEM. I WOULD LOVE TO GO DOWNTOWN AND HANG OUT, BUT I DON’T FEEL SAFE DOWNTOWN. SHE LIVES IN FOREST PARK AND WORKS IN THE CITY. HER PERSPECTIVE SPEAKS TO THIS PAST SUMMER’S VIRAL BRAWL AND RECENT GUNPLAY IN THE HEART OF THE URBAN CORE. TWO OF HER CHILDREN LIVE IN THE DOWNTOWN AREA. I’M VERY CONCERNED ABOUT THEIR SAFETY AS WELL. YOU KNOW, AND THE OTHER CITIZENS IN THE CITY. I’M VERY CONCERNED ABOUT LEADERSHIP MATTERS, COMPETENCE MATTERS. P█OLITICS MATTERS. THERE’S A LINE OF THOUGHT THAT IN A LOW TURNOUT ELECTION, REPUBLICANS AND INDEPENDENTS MOTIVATED BY SAFETY ISSUES COULD EXERT ENOUGH INFLUENCE TO CRACK THE ALL DEMOCRAT HOLD CITY HALL. THE BENEFITS TYPICALLY VOTE A DEMOCRATIC TICKET. BUT THIS TIME, THERE’S SOME OF THE CANDIDATES THAT ARE IN THE CHARTER PARTY THAT HAVE DONE A GOOD JOB IN THE PAST, THAT I MIGHT RECONSIDER GOING IN AND CHOOSING SOME OF THOSE. AND I KNOW THERE’S A REPUBLICAN CANDIDATE THAT I LIKE TO. AND SO FAR, ROUGHLY 3700 PEOPLE HAVE VOTED EARLY HERE AT THE EARLY VOTE CENTER. ABOUT 10,000 HAVE REQUESTED MAIL IN BALLOTS. THE DEADLINE TO DO THAT IS JUST OVER A WEEK AWAY. YOU MUST SUBMIT AN APPLICATION TO THE BOARD OF ELECTIONS BY 8:30 P.M. NEXT TUESDAY, OCTOBER 28TH, REPORTING LIVE IN NORWOOD, JOHN, LON