Ehley, Donegan advance to spring mayoral race

The race for Wauwatosa mayor is down to Alderman Peter Donegan and Kathy Ehley, executive director of the Village Business Improvement District.

Businessman John Pokrandt has been eliminated from the competition.

Ehley, who took the most votes with 3,079 - or 47 percent of the vote - credited a history of numerous leadership positions and connections within the city for her success, as well as having met a lot of people while knocking on doors.

"I'm the one candidate that has the proven track record of getting people together to make things happen for the betterment of the community," she said.

Donegan was the second-highest vote-getter with 2,366, or 37 percent. He wasn't immediately available for comment.

Pokrandt trailed with 1,033 votes (16 percent). But he stands behind the way he ran the race and plans to seek office again in the future.

"I believe my campaign did everything we could do and am proud of the dedication of my volunteers and the clean campaign we ran," Pokrandt said.

As he steps back from campaigning, he sees "the priorities of the candidates moving forward are complex."

He foresees a redesign of the road at UW Innovation Park, which some have said is too wide, and working to find a tenant or owner capable of keeping the Rosebud Cinema on North Avenue. It was announced today the cinema in East Tosa is expected to close in March.