The mayoral race in Reading, Ohio — a suburb of Cincinnati — is heating up. Joining the race to defeat incumbent Robert P. “Bo” Bemmes in November is a busty, scantily-clad female called BarBe Q. This unique politician is not prone to long-winded speeches. In fact, she can’t talk because she is a mannequin.
‘This is not a stunt’
Her campaign manager, restauranteur Kenny Tessel, says this is no joke. “We’re asking for write-in votes. This is not a stunt. She’s running on a real platform, with real issues.”
She brings in traffic
BarBe Q works for Tessel’s restaurant, KT’s Barbeque and Deli, as a hostess of sorts. She stands outside the establishment dressed in a bikini top, short shorts and a baseball cap, luring in hungry patrons.
Campaign platform
Tessel explained that BarBe Q wants to draw attention to the mom and pop and stand-alone store owners who are competing with fast food franchise chains and $1 meal menus:
“In general, BarBe Q wants to draw awareness to the fast food and chain restaurant mentality that permeates this area, which leads to obesity and other bad health habits, which lead to higher insurance premiums for people that actually work and pay taxes. Cincinnati is ranked eighth in the nation for the amount of fast food consumption.”
Gained media attention in 2009
BarBe Q caught media attention back in April, 2009 when the Reading Design Review Board ordered her to put on more clothes. But Tessel appealed the decision to the Reading Zoning Board of Appeals and won in a July, 2009 decision.
Decision was anti-competitive
Tessel argued that the decision of the Design Review Board was anti-competitive. According to Tessel, the restaurant is attracting at about 40 percent more business than before BarBe Q took up her post outside the restaurant.
Sources
Huffington Post: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/09/26/busty-mannequin-barbe-q-r_n_981485.html#s288119&title=Anthony_Weiner
Business Courier: http://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/stories/2009/07/06/daily19.html
Cincinnati.com: http://cincinnati.com/blogs/politics/2011/09/26/reading-mannequin-runs-for-office/
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