Bob Hawkesworth says he ‘can’t win the mayor’s race’

CALGARY – Bob Hawkesworth has conceded that he can’t win the mayor’s race, but is unsure whether he’ll endorse anyone or even stop campaigning.

"Short of a miracle — and apparently these happen — I’m not going to be Calgary’s next mayor," he said in an interview Tuesday morning.

Polls have repeatedly shown him unable to top four- or three-per-cent support, and far back from Naheed Nenshi, Ric McIver and new frontrunner Barb Higgins.

He said he appreciates his "rock-solid base" but it’s "far from a winning majority, so I have to be frank about it and I will."

With six days to the civic election, the Ward 4 veteran said he’ll either keep campaigning to stress his priorities or back a candidate his views line up with.

If he endorses, Higgins would appear to be his pick. Hawkesworth said he entered the race because he disliked McIver’s vision, and he’s campaigned bitterly against Nenshi.

As for Higgins’ priorities, "I have questions. I’m not sure absolutely what those (priorities) are," Hawkesworth said.

Widely regarded as soft-spoken politician over 30 years as alderman and MLA, Hawkesworth took a pugilistic turn in his mayoral bid.

His fierce opposition to an airport access tunnel became a campaign signature, as did his disputed contention that Naheed Nenshi would sell Enmax.

Hawkesworth’s past council colleagues Joe Connelly, Jon Lord, Craig Burrows and Barry Erskine have also struggled badly in the polls — along with former charity executive Wayne Stewart. None have showed signs of conceding, though Stewart and Connelly had both mused about dropping out before the Sept. 20 nomination day, after a Herald poll spelled out their daunting odds.