Andy Shallal, activist and owner of "the Busboys & Poets mini-empire," said he intends to enter the Washington, D.C., mayoral race. During an appearance on WAMU-FM's Politics Hour, Shallal "made his intentions clear" and acknowledged "that he encountered plenty of skepticism from supporters curious as to why he'd want to enter the world of electoral politics," the Washington Post reported.
"The first thing they said was, 'Why do you want to be in this messy, filthy business?' That's not reassuring," Shallal recalled. The Post noted that he "wants to take a stab at bridging the city's cultural and economic divides, and he's planned a campaign kickoff for Tuesday at Ben's Chili Bowl."
