After today's primary election, the race for Madison mayor will be narrowed down from four candidates to two. When you head to the polls today, we urge you vote for Ray Allen.

After meeting with all four candidates, we think Mr. Allen proved his mettle on a range of issues from public safety to poverty to Halloween.

We appreciate Mr. Allen's recognition that crime is the biggest concern facing students in Madison. When commenting on the recent spate of crimes in the campus area, Mr. Allen has stressed the need for additional police resources. Mr. Allen also shares our privacy concerns regarding the proposed security cameras downtown and did not brush the issue off as have fellow candidate Peter Muñoz and incumbent Mayor Dave Cieslewicz.

To address the recent increase in crime in Madison, Mr. Allen believes the city should act more aggressively to confront the poverty he believes has put public safety at risk. For example, rather than displace residents of the city's worst neighborhoods, Mr. Allen believes the city should allow them to buy a portion of public housing in order to improve their quality of life.

We were also impressed with Mr. Allen's perspective on the annual Halloween celebration. Instead of throwing a "wet blanket" on the event, Mr. Allen sees Halloween as a vital asset to the city. He envisions it as an event Madison should promote and not discourage, and he has philosophical objections to charging citizens for entry onto a public street. While his plan to push back bar time for the celebration would be a tough sell to the state Legislature, we appreciate Mr. Allen's effort.

As a small-business owner himself, Mr. Allen would be well equipped to promote business growth in Madison. Mr. Allen opposes the misguided Alcohol Density Plan, and he believes limiting the number of bars downtown could contribute to the city's safety woes by encouraging students to host unregulated house parties that are far more dangerous than licensed bars. He also opposes placing additional mandates on Madison businesses that give neighboring areas a competitive advantage — most notably the city's smoking ban, which was implemented in 2005.

In light of the estimated 100,000 additional cars the mayor's office expects in Dane County within the next 20 years, Mr. Allen agrees the city has an impending transportation crisis.

We share the concern, though, that the mayor's streetcar proposal may not be the best answer. Instead, we look forward to hearing more about his plans to handle the influx by bolstering Madison's bus system — which is ineffective outside the confines of the downtown area — and improving roadways.

Mr. Allen also sees the recently approved "anti-oath" — which allows city officials to formally state their opposition to the gay-marriage ban — as a dangerous precedent for public officials who are sworn to uphold the state Constitution.

In addition, Mr. Allen, a UW alumnus, has stressed his commitment to improving the quality of life for students and pledges to hold campus forums on a regular basis — as well as solicit student membership on vital city committees.

Having served three terms on the Madison School Board, Mr. Allen is a proactive leader with considerable experience in public service. He combines the communication skills of Mayor Cieslewicz with the fiscally sound policies of Mr. Muñoz. We fully expect Mayor Cieslewicz to advance past today's primary, and we hope for a spirited debate between Mr. Allen and Mr. Cieslewicz leading up to the general election.