When Paulain Selvin at the Dan Brothers Shoes store in Federal Hill hears the name “Sheila Dixon” he excitedly runs to the back of the store, gesturing to a woman in a red jacket to follow him. He excitedly points to a framed picture of his brother with then City Council President Dixon. There’s one thing he doesn’t realize about the woman in the red jacket.

“It’s me! I’m Sheila Dixon!” she cries out.

Sulvan’s face lights up like he’s just seen an old friend.

“Bless your heart!” he exclaims.

It cuts to the heart of Dixon’s appeal. She’s familiar. People feel like they know her.

“I think it's because people can feel my genuineness. And they can feel my love for the people of this city. And that I'm approachable,” she said, speaking in an interview from her Remington campaign headquarters where she’s running her third — and she says — final, bid to retake her seat as mayor.

She’s going up against incumbent Mayor Brandon Scott in the Democratic primary.

Born and raised in Ashburton, Dixon entered city politics in the 1990’s and became Baltimore’s first female mayor in 2007. Dixon’s main message is that she is going to get the city back on track, like how she says it was under her administration in the 2000’s. She wants to focus on improving services like the permitting system and 311 response time.

Political scientist and Johns Hopkins professor emeritus Matthew Crenson calls her “forceful” and said that in that time, she built a reputation as a strong manager.

“In a city that's in Baltimore shape, people look to such a mayor who's going to create an image of the city, who's going to take charge, and is going to change things — drastically. And that’s what I think people see in her,” he speculated.

Dixon, now 70, has taken swipes at Scott’s perceived “youth” and has insinuated that he is “learning on the job” (Scott is 40 years old and was elected to the city council in 2011). While Scott has endorsements from over half of the current city council and the state’s two sitting senators, Dixon is supported by the “old guard.” One exception to that rule is Councilmember Eric Costello, who currently represents the city’s 11th district and was one of Dixon’s earliest endorsers. Dixon is endorsed by Mayor Bernard “Jack” Young, Councilwoman Rochelle "Rikki" Spector (District 5), Councilman Jim Kraft (District 1) and former US Senator Barbara Mikulski.

She’s also endorsed by Baltimore City’s State’s attorney Ivan Bates and city Sheriff Sam Cogen.

Homicides were historically low during Dixon’s administration, dropping from 282 to 238 alongside an overall drop in violent crime. Arrests fell under her administration too as she formally ended her predecessor Martin O’Malley’s “zero-tolerance” approach to policing. Earlier this year she unveiled her public safety plan which calls for promoting public safety jobs to public school students and contracting part-time positions for police officers.

Police officer vacancy is a problem nationwide. In June, the Baltimore Police Department had 522 vacancies with 338 those being patrol officers.

Dixon has neither committed to nor promised to revoke Mayor Brandon Scott’s Group Violence Reduction Strategy. Dixon’s crime plan also emphasizes “focused deterrence” policing which goes after people at risk to become involved with gun violence and offers them social services or consequences with law enforcement.

That’s very similar to the Scott’s GVRS, said Daniel Webster, a gun violence researcher at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

“She did not really invest in interventions outside of law enforcement,” said Webster of the former mayor. He also noted that when Dixon was mayor, there was a nationwide trend of reduced homicides and violent crime. That’s a fact that Dixon and her supporters like to point out of Scott when he mentions the current homicide drop.

“I think she benefited from just the set of social conditions that were going on in that time… I just haven't heard anything from her and her strategy that is at all innovative,” he said.

Campaign money has been a source of controversy this time around. A super-PAC that is not directly affiliated with her campaign but raises money in support of Dixon, is almost entirely funded by Republican billionaire David Smith — chairman of the Sinclair Broadcast Group (which owns WBFF/Fox 45 locally) and co-owner of the Baltimore Sun — and Baltimore County real estate developer John “Jack” Luetkemeyer, Jr.

The Baltimore Brew reported that Smith told Dixon he would give her campaign money in exchange for her support of dismantling the Safe Streets violence intervention program and firing the current CEO of city schools. Dixon rejects claims that she is “for sale” or has made those deals. She says she’s only met David Smith in a group setting with other regional business members.

“It was a question and answer period, you know, based on, ‘So how are you going to deal with crime? How are you going to deal with this issue?’” she explained to WYPR. “So they all were in unison and wanting the best for the city. And that was the extent of it. You know, before that, and beyond that, I don't know Dave. [He] and I are not friends. I don't have his phone number, he doesn't have my phone, and we don't get on the phone and chat. We don't have a relationship.”

Dixon did say she would audit Safe Streets.

During her administration, the homicide rate steadily declined but she had to resign as mayor in 2010 as part of a plea deal when she was convicted of embezzlement over stolen gift cards.

Roger Hartley, the dean of the College of Public Affairs at University of Baltimore calls her legacy “mixed.”

“She left office in disgrace. People, still some people who remember feel that she had a strong administration other than those ethical issues that occurred,” said Hartley. “Her second legacy is that she still got some strong support from voters in the city that show up at least [percentage] in the 30s or so. And she lost the election the last time.”

Dixon has since apologized each time she’s run for office and emphasized second chances after a recent debate.

“Everybody makes mistakes. And if we don't forgive anybody, then how do we move forward? Then people incarcerated who come out want a second chance and a third chance,” she said. “I'm truthful. I'm straightforward. I'm very honest. And I'm transparent. And I will continue to be there.”

Early voting runs until May 9th, with the primary on May 14th.