Insider polling is starting to circulate in the ABQ mayoral race and unsurprisingly it shows Mayor Keller securely in first place. BernCo Sheriff Manny Gonzales is in second and radio talk show host Eddy Aragon places third. 

Second place is only important if Keller fails to garner 50 percent of the vote. In that event a run-off election will be called for December between the top two vote-getters.

The polling we've been looped into by reliable sources indicates if the election were held today Keller would cross that 50 percent threshold but the most intense phase of the campaign, including attacks, is only about to start. 

A run-off election for Keller is a threat as it could reset the race for many voters. Still, in a Democratic city and facing either conservative Gonzales or Aragon, Keller would remain the favorite. 

Forcing the Mayor into a run-off is now dependent on Gonzales and Aragon capturing the boiling rage that lies just below the surface in the state's largest city as it remains embroiled in a historic and long-lasting crime wave. 

Unfortunately for Gonzales, he continues to grapple with a nightmare narrative over campaign financing. Last week the City Ethics Board fined him

$2,000--one of the largest ever--and he was also publicly reprimanded for having his campaign commit forgery as it tried to qualify for public financing. 

For two long months his campaign has been consumed by legal battles over that financing and to no avail. Court rulings mean he will not get the over $600,000 that Keller has. Aragon is privately financing and Gonzales has been forced to go that route. 

The botched signature operation has been a momentum killer for the lawman who is campaigning on a platform of law and order in crime-ridden ABQ. 

Consultants on both sides of the aisle now say in his paid media Gonzales must answer voter concerns over the election fraud and also launch vigorous attacks on Keller's record on crime. They also agree that Gonzales was badly advised to continue fighting for the public money and should have quit after the initial court ruling. They say that would have given him more time to raise private cash as well as begin overdue attacks on Keller. 

The Gonzales campaign now says the sheriff has raised "nearly $200,000" in private donations. A report earlier this month had a pro-Manny PAC independent of the Gonzales campaign with $92,000 on hand. A PAC backing Keller reported $52,000 in cash. Entering the race late, Aragon reported raising $32,000 and had about $13,000 in cash.

Gonzales, desperately needing to focus on crime, comes with this endorsement from former APD Chief Mike Geier who was fired by Keller:

Hours later Keller came with a major labor union endorsement:

Meanwhile, Aragon the only R in the race, continues to struggle with a divided GOP, writing on social media:

The action will pick up on the campaign trail this week. Tonight at 6 PM the NM Black Voters Collaborative will host a mayoral forum at Highland High School which will be streamed here. Tomorrow night at 6 PM the ABQ Chamber of Commerce forum will be broadcast on KKOB radio and streamed here. 

The first paid broadcast media of the city election started over the weekend and is in support of the proposed downtown soccer stadium. We'll gather further info. 

The name Peter Trevisani, a co-owner of the NM United soccer team pushing the stadium which will cost upwards of $80 million, has been everywhere. Last week he made headlines when he announced the team will donate $10 million toward construction of the stadium, if the $50 million proposed bond issue is approved.

But who is Trevisani?

Political activist Jason Barker, who opposes the stadium, answers that question in this social media post:

We can't vouch for Barker's contention that Trevisani could put the cost of the stadium on his American Express card but he is obviously a man of means. So is his fellow NM United co-owner Ed Garcia of the Garcia automative family. They have purchased tens of millions of dollars in downtown real estate near where the stadium would most likely be built. 

Pro-stadium views are also welcome here as we cover both sides.