In his campaign, Kucinich hearkened back to Cleveland's glory days, especially of Tom L. Johnson, the former progressive mayor who governed the city from 1901 to 1909. Kucinich ran on Johnson's populist philosophy, which he felt would ultimately solve the city's problems. Tax abatement became the new issue held against Feighan. As a state representative, Feighan chaired the committee that passed tax abatement legislation in the Ohio House and now was unable to backtrack on the issue. In the general election, Kucinich won with 93,047 votes, against Feighan received 90,074 votes. At 31, he was the youngest mayor of a major city in the United States.