Photo by C.Ross513.

We’ve said it before, we’ll say it again — at this point, next Tuesday’s At-Large Special Election is totally up for grabs. No one candidate has risen up above the rest, and institutional support and endorsements have splintered in a number of ways.

Consider the media endorsements so far. Bryan Weaver picked up the City Paper (after having gotten The InTowner and Georgetown Voice) and Greater Greater Washington, while Interim Councilmember Sekou Biddle has claimed The Current, Vincent Orange has The Georgetowner, and Patrick Mara snagged the Post.

As for organizations and institutions, Biddle has picked up a number of establishment progressive groups, including the Sierra Club, D.C. for Democracy, Democracy for America, the Gertrude Stein Democratic Club and SEIU. Biddle’s also cornered the majority of the D.C. Council — including councilmembers Tommy Wells (D-Ward 6) and David Catania (I-At Large) — and taken in $1,000 from the D.C. Democratic State Committee, making him about as close to an “establishment” candidate as there could be.

Orange, on the other hand, has raked in the mainstream union support, claiming the D.C. AFL-CIO and Washington Teachers’ Union, along with the Ward 8 Democrats. Weaver’s message has seemed to appeal most to young voters, with the D.C. Youth PAC and D.C. College Democrats throwing their weight behind him, while Mara has taken in the support of the D.C. Republican Party and the D.C. Log Cabin Republicans; though it didn’t formally endorse any candidate, the D.C. Chamber of Commerce gave Mara $1,000, and the pro-business Bud’sPAC has sent out mailers on his behalf.

Josh Lopez’s support is less institutional, though it’s still there — a number of ANC commissioners and activists have jumped on with his campaign, as have many Latin American restaurants. (Taqueria Distrito Federal, Guapo’s and El Tamarindo have given his campaign money, and his campaign signs appear in a number of Mt. Pleasant eateries.)

All these endorsements are useful, though — they help enlighten what you could expect from each of the candidates if they were elected to office, both good and bad. Weaver seems to be the candidate for the city’s youthful social media set, while Biddle appeals to traditional progressive constituencies. Mara is pro-business and ready to do battle with what he sees as a corrupt Democratic establishment, and Orange has emerged as the working man’s candidate. Lopez is a young firebrand who’s position as the first possible Latino councilmember in history has fired up the city’s Hispanic voters.

Not only is the race a bit of a toss-up, but another interesting trend is emerging — while no one candidate is a clear favorite, many people don’t seem like they would be particularly upset with any of these five candidates as their new At-Large councilmember. That’s a good thing, if you consider how strongly divided opinions were over Vince Gray and Adrian Fenty during last year’s mayoral contest.

It’s coming down to the final days, and nothing indicates that a clear frontrunner will emerge before April 26. Election night should be exciting, huh?