San Diego - In three weeks San Diegans will decide if they want Carl DeMaio or Bob Filner to be their next mayor.

For the first time, Doug Manchester speaks about one of the most contentious local elections in years.

Manchester made his fortune as a developer. Now, as owner of U.T. San Diego, he makes no apologies for advocating for his candidate of choice, San Diego City Councilman Carl DeMaio.

“Carl is a very independent person,” Manchester said during an interview with KPBS.

He isn't just championing DeMaio's bid to be the next mayor of San Diego, he has slammed DeMaio's opponent, Bob Filner.

“I'm supporting Carl DeMaio because he stands for fiscal responsibility and he has not been bought and paid for by the unions like Bob Filner has," he said.

Manchester said the unions have spent far more money supporting Filner than Manchester has spent supporting DeMaio.

Yet, the race has been a bloody battle of words. Both sides launching verbal torpedoes at one another.

DeMaio and Manchester said Filner is in bed with the unions.

Filner counters his opponent's claims of being in bed with the unions by saying that developers have DeMaio in their back pocket.

Manchester said that’s not true. He just believes DeMaio would be a better fiscal steward for the city.

“He thinks for himself, he has proven that time and time again. He's never wavered on anything,” Manchester said.

DeMaio and Manchester have some major differences. DeMaio is gay and Manchester was a big advocate for Proposition 8, which banned same-sex marriage in California.