The parade of reporters getting some time with Chief Mike Reese this morning—where he'll be telling everyone he's interested in replacing Mayor Sam Adams, but not actually decided—has begun.

But I'll remind you all where you heard Reese first mentioned as a mayoral candidate. It was on KPOJ-AM (620), during my weekly chat with host Carl Wolfson, way back on June 30. Prominent politicos were already quietly talking up Reese's potential.

Anyway, the Oregonian a little while ago had this to say:

Reese said he was approached by several people and urged to consider entering the race.

"Some people who I really respect asked me to run. It's a unique opportunity," Reese said, seated in the chief's office on the 15th floor of the Justice Center. He wore a dark blue suit, blue tie and white shirt. Beside him was a Ouija board he found in a rummage sale.

"I've decided to take it under serious consideration," Reese said. "The next four years are really critical for the health of the city."

Reese's intentions were the stuff of dueling reports last night. The O has had to retreat a bit after quoting Reese, after a Monday interview, saying he wasn't interested in running for mayor this year, but possibly in five years. Although the statements so far from the chief aren't as definitive as what WW reported—that he'd already decided to jump in. Reese told the O he changed course after meeting with consultants and others Monday night.

The mayor, outside city council, repeated his comment uttered to earlier outlets: "If he's elected, he'd make a great mayor." And, right now, Nick Fish and Randy Leonard, a Reese ally, just finished chatting on the sideline of the city council chambers, not long after reporters told Fish why they were waiting to talk to the mayor.

Reese has received a lot of plaudits for working on a shift in the police bureau's culture after a "tumultuous" year. Will Reese be the business community's darling? (His civilian director of services and very good friend, Mike Kuykendall, was Portland Business Alliance vice president before joining the bureau.) Or will he wind up carrying the standard for organized labor, in something of an unconventional choice? (Reese approved a very generous Portland Police Association contract this year.)

Update 11:37 AM: PPA President Daryl Turner replied succinctly when asked if the union would support Reese for mayor: "No comment."

Reese has to decide whether it's too late to raise his profile, sharpen up on non-police policy issues, and start hauling in campaign cash. The current crop of candidates will all have six-figure head starts by the time Reese decides.