Tom for Mayor

The closing of Tom Riley’s farm threatens both his livelihood and his campaign for mayor. Apples must be recalled, customers are frightened, and Bart Rathbone eagerly presents the environmental report as proof that Tom cannot be trusted with Odyssey. Sam Johnson keeps filming his documentary while Tom refuses to surrender either the farm or the truth.

Tom confronts Philip Glossman and announces that he will arrange independent testing. Eugene agrees to serve as the expert, with Sam and his camera recording the investigation. They take samples both upstream and downstream from the farm. Their results show no contamination at all, raising the question of how the government inspectors produced their alarming report.

Preparations for the mayoral debate continue. Connie handles Tom’s television makeup while Bernard tries to prepare him for Bart’s attacks. Jack Allen serves as moderator, and reporter Bryan Dern joins the questioning. Bart attempts to please everyone by supporting every side of every issue. He interrupts, advertises the Electric Palace, and offers grand promises with few practical details. Tom argues that good government should support individual effort and responsibility rather than pretending it can solve every problem for everyone.

While gathering further evidence, Eugene and Sam discover Ferder and Ernest pouring chemicals directly into the stream. Hidden nearby, they hear the men admit that their equipment is phony. Their method is to dump contaminants into the water and then conduct a test designed to find what they have just planted. Sam records the confession until his camera’s battery begins to fail.

Connie arrives and accidentally announces their presence. Ferder and Ernest demand the videotape, and the three friends race for their car. They escape because the keys have been left in the ignition, carrying the evidence toward the debate before the agents can stop them.

Bart is attacking Tom over pesticides and poisoned apples when Eugene, Sam, and Connie burst into the room. Sam announces that he has recorded the fraud. Glossman demands possession of the tape, but Eugene insists that copies must be made first. The debate pauses while the evidence is examined.

Ferder and Ernest are placed on administrative leave pending an investigation. Glossman denies knowing anything about their scheme and portrays himself as another victim of their dishonesty. With the environmental report discredited, Tom’s farm is cleared and allowed to reopen.

On election night, Tom receives seventy-seven percent of the vote, while Bart receives fourteen percent. Bart delivers a concession that sounds almost as if he is granting Tom permission to win. As Odyssey’s new mayor, Tom promises to serve diligently, wisely, and faithfully, depending on God’s grace for the task ahead.

The victory does not end the danger. In a private telephone call, Glossman tells an unidentified superior that Ferder and Ernest were careless. He promises to repair the damage and warns that Tom and his friends have not seen the last of them.