Hession-French rematch on the horizon?

Days ago, Dennis Hession announced his intent to seek a full term as mayor of Spokane, a seat he was appointed to following the recall of the late Jim West in December of 2005. Almost immediately, Councilman Al French jumped on the mayor for use of a PR firm with close ties to the mayor's campaign, and has publicly mulled a run for the office himself, with an expected announcement by the end of the month. This would not only give Hession detractors a promising candidate for the fall election, but it would be a rematch of the 2003 council president race, which Hession narrowly won in spite of near-unanimous support of French by the city and county governments.

Now, I admit I'm a bit behind on keeping up on Spokane politics now that I've been living elsewhere for the past ten months. However, most of what I've read of Hession's leadership has been negative, often a result of overt timidity similar to criticisms of Seattle Councilman Richard Conlin. I never had a problem with Hession when living in Spokane, but being that I've long been a supporter of French on the Council, if he enters the race I will support his candidacy. He represents an ideal blend of business ties, social tolerance, and fiscal responsibility.