Rein says he’s going to ‘stay in his lane,’ won’t file petitions to run in Republican primary for mayor

QUINCY — Mike Rein’s dalliance with the idea of running for mayor lasted about a week.

Rein, an alderman in Quincy’s 5^th Ward, recently pulled petitions to run for re-election as alderman, but he also pulled petitions to run for mayor. He had to choose between which office he wanted to run for by Oct. 28.

He announced his decision not to run for mayor at the end of Monday night’s Quincy City Council meeting.

“First of all, I want to set the record straight. I did pull a petition, but I am not going to run for mayor,” he said. “I’m going to stay in my own lane and stay as an alderman. I’ve got something else going on, so I’m not going to do that. I wanted to make a public announcement so it didn’t sound like I did something weird.”

Rein, a Republican, has been an alderman in the 5^th Ward since he was appointed by then-Mayor Chuck Scholz, a Democrat, in December 1999 to fill the spot created when Dave Hummel vacated the position to become the city’s director of purchasing.

Asked after the meeting why he pulled petitions to run for mayor, Rein said, “I was just in the (Adams County) clerk’s office, and I said, ‘Give them to me. I’m just curious.’ I was disappointed and shocked that it takes 25 signatures to run for mayor. That’s too damn low. It’s ridiculous. If you can’t get seven times that, you shouldn’t even think about it.”

Rein said he didn’t even tell his wife, Pam, that he pulled the petitions.

“I didn’t tell anybody,” he said. “I spent a week thinking about it, and I’m not going to do it. I just don’t want to.”

Two Republican candidates turned in petitions for mayor at the beginning of the filing period Monday morning at City Hall. 

Dan Brink was first in line with 740 signatures on his petitions. Troup, who told MRN he had “fifty-something” signatures, was third in line behind former City Clerk Janet Hutmacher, who was turning in the petitions for City Clerk Laura Oakman. 

Because Troup and Brink were in line when the clerk’s office opened at 8:30 a.m., they will participate in a lottery next week for the top spot on the Feb. 25 primary ballot. The window to file petitions will close at 5 p.m. Oct. 28.

Former City Treasurer Linda Moore also has announced an independent candidacy for mayor. Petitions for independent candidates don’t have to be filed until from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on Nov. 12-15, or from 8:30 p.m. to 5 p.m. on Nov. 18.