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NewsDecember 30, 2009

Retired businessman Harry Rediger got the jump on his opponents in the race for Cape Girardeau mayor with a set of 4-by-4-foot roadside signs and the placement of yard signs. But former city Councilman Matt Hopkins said his advertising effort will begin soon, with signs starting to appear next week and media and direct mail advertising to follow...

A mayoral campaign sign along Broadway in Cape Girardeau. (Kit Doyle)
A mayoral campaign sign along Broadway in Cape Girardeau. (Kit Doyle)

Retired businessman Harry Rediger got the jump on his opponents in the race for Cape Girardeau mayor with a set of 4-by-4-foot roadside signs and the placement of yard signs.

But former city Councilman Matt Hopkins said his advertising effort will begin soon, with signs starting to appear next week and media and direct mail advertising to follow.

Rediger and Hopkins, along with businessman Walter White, are competing in a primary that will be held Feb. 2. The top two vote getters will be on the April 6 general election ballot, when voters will choose a successor to two-term incumbent Mayor Jay Knudtson, who is barred from seeking re-election.

Voters in Ward 2, which includes downtown south of North Street and most of south Cape Girardeau, will also go to the polls Feb. 2 to choose two council candidates for the general election. Meg Davis-Proffer, a marketing saleswoman, Don Howard, a medical technician, and Stafford Moore are running in Ward 2 to replace incumbent Councilman Charlie Herbst, who is being forced out by term limits.

Rediger's red, white and blue signs are the first attempts by any of the candidates to raise their name recognition among voters. Due to the short time remaining before the election -- five weeks -- Rediger said it was important for him to get started before the new year.

"It's going well," Rediger said of the campaign. "We've got our arms around the campaign, and it is doing well."

And in what is an apparent first for Cape Girardeau, Rediger is using not only the Internet to promote his campaign but also using the social networking site Facebook.

"The campaign is almost higher tech than I am," Rediger joked.

Hopkins, too, said he feels good about the campaign at this point. "I've got a lot of people out there talking about the race and a lot of grassroots support," he said.

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Hopkins said he will rely on the network of friends and supporters he built up while representing Ward 5 on the council. "I was there for eight years and gained a lot of knowledge," Hopkins said. "I made a lot of friends, and lots of people are aware of the things I did while I was there."

Hopkins, an account representative for Technology and Networking, said his campaign will have a web presence but did not provide a web address Tuesday.

White, a real estate investor and owner of Ole Country Store, 1007 S. Sprigg St., did not return a message left on his home telephone.

White is making his third bid for mayor. He also ran unsuccessfully for Cape Girardeau County Commission and the Cape Girardeau School Board.

The end of the holiday period will be the kickoff for a sprint to Feb. 2, Rediger said.

"I think the primary is a positive thing," he said. "It is a shorter time frame, it forces us to get organized and campaign in a shorter window."

rkeller@semissourian.com

388-3642

Pertinent address:

401 Independence St., Cape Girardeau, MO

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