Vokal to keep eye on Mayor’s Office

Jim Vokal is not being subtle about his political aspirations.

The Omaha Republican, who lost a mayoral bid this year, appears to be positioning himself for a run against Mayor Jim Suttle in 2013.

Vokal is creating a political watchdog group to keep tabs on Suttle, a Democrat, and the Omaha City Council. He says the group is not a byproduct of his political ambitions, although he makes it clear he still has his eye on the city’s top job.

“It’s not a secret I wanted to be mayor of Omaha, and that is a job I consider my dream job. I will continue to take steps to make that happen as long as that is my goal,” said Vokal, a commercial real estate broker and developer.

“(But) is this group related to that? No, it’s not. It’s my way to stay involved over the next four years.”

Suttle responded that he would welcome any and all help from Vokal as the city confronts a serious financial crunch. But Suttle questioned whether Vokal’s group was more about politics than finding solutions to the city’s problems.

“We need to work together to solve these problems and not be divided by tactics and maneuvers that resemble campaign rhetoric,” said Ron Gerard, Suttle’s spokesman.

Vokal is a former city councilman who gave up his seat to run for mayor against fellow Republican Hal Daub and Suttle. The youngest candidate in the race, Vokal, 39, faced an uphill fight as he battled the better-known Daub for GOP voters.

His campaign ended in the April primary with a third-place finish.

Vokal has remained active in city politics since then. Earlier this month, he joined the Metropolitan Entertainment and Convention Authority board, which oversees the Qwest Center Omaha.

Vokal’s group will be called the Omaha Moving Ahead PAC. It will raise money, hold rallies and keep its supporters updated through e-mails and social networking sites on the Internet, such as Facebook and Twitter.

Vokal said he believes the group will have $25,000 in the bank by the end of September, based on comments and promises he has received in the business community.

He said the main purpose of the group will be to “hold the Suttle administration accountable” over the next four years and to protect taxpayers as Suttle deals with the economic crunch.

But, he said, the group will not just be focused on criticizing Suttle.

“This isn’t an attempt to bring down the Suttle administration. When they do something right, we’re going to let our supporters know they’re doing something right,” Vokal said.

Vokal will serve as honorary chairman of the group. The three other board members: Jeff Beals, vice president of Coldwell Banker Commercial World Group, who works with Vokal at Coldwell; Rick Bettger, an Omaha businessman; and Pam Homan, a Democrat and mother of three.

Contact the writer:

444-1309, robynn.tysver@owh.com