After the South Seas series, The Spirit returned to find that Mayor Bowser had resigned. The Candidate, published on 21 August 1949 introduces us to Monica Veto - who decides to propose The Spirit as Mayor after he brings in a blackmailer who is trying to sell Monica dirt on the rivals, the Prosperity Party. After a mass poster campaign which upsets The Spirit as he has refused to run as Mayor, the Prosperity Party get worried and kidnap The Spirit and Commissioner Dolan.

The Spirit does nothing as he is delighted to be kidnapped and hopefully out of the candidacy, but Dolan loses his temper... Monica and members of the press arrive on the scene and find Dolan dragging out The Spirit's unconcious body! Naturally by the next day all hopes of The Spirit running for mayor are dashed, but Monica has a new candidate - Dolan!

The following weeks' section shows Dolan as the new Mayor. Soon unhappy with the job, Eustace turns over more and more of his duties to Monica, who soon takes charge and arranges some shady deals which Dolan is unaware of. After The Spirit pays him a visit, Eustace confronts Monica and informs her that she is no longer required on staff. Monica informs Dolan that as Mayor he is tied up in every shady deal that she has arranged and that she is only keeping him on as a figurehead! Dolan sees that he has no option but to resign.

Fortunately, The Spirit has found an ancient document which promises the payment of four hundred dollars to the Cloudfeet indians for continued ownership of the city - the sum has not been paid. A triumphant Dolan confronts Monica in a packed Town Hall with a descendent of the Cloudfeet tribe (who conveniently works on the police force) and declares that City owes over four million dollars (taking into account the interest accumulated over the years). Such a payment would bring Central City into bankruptcy and would bring about a public audit of the city funds, something which Monica is not anxious to see.

Asking what Dolan wants to prevent the audit, he tells her and her men to leave the city and that the welfare bills which she had held up are to be passed immediately - she agrees. Eustace's last act as Mayor is to resign and resume his post as Police Commissioner. As for the ancient document - the descendent takes it:

"I'm putting this document in storage, Spirit! Who knows... someday I may feel like owning a city!"

The post of Mayor of Central City comes up again just over a year later, with the 12 November 1950 section. So far we have seen The Spirit and Eustace Dolan proposed as candidates for Mayor, so who else...

To find out, click here.