SAN DIEGO -- Councilwoman Donna Frye pulled the necessary paperwork with the City Clerk's Office Thursday to run as a write-in candidate for mayor of San Diego.

"This is truly a grassroots campaign by the people, for the people, and of the people," Frye said. "I am running for mayor because I want to offer voters a real choice in this election."

Frye, 52, has until Oct. 19 to submit 200 signatures, a $500 fee and the necessary paperwork to officially be considered a candidate .

The Democrat would need 34 percent of the vote to beat her Republican opponents -- incumbent Dick Murphy and county Supervisor Ron Roberts -- for the nonpartisan mayor's office.

Frye said the condition of the city's debt-ridden pension system and ongoing financial problems make her the best choice for mayor.

"I would do the best job as the next mayor of the city of San Diego," Frye said. "I believe I am a better candidate and can do a better job."

Frye said she would fight for fiscal responsibility, oppose back-room deals, stop closed-door meetings and advocate for quality-of-life issues.

"I'm not going to stand here and say I've got all the answers -- I don't," Frye said. "I do have the ability to listen and hear what people are saying and to get people together and to bring them together to find a comprehensive solution."

Frye said community pressure heavily weighed on her decision to run in the Nov. 2 election.

"The public has asked if I would give them a choice -- somebody to vote for -- and I said yes," she said.

Voters who wish to cast their ballot for Frye will be asked to fill in a circle by pen or pencil and write in her name. Murphy and Roberts' names will already be printed on the ballot.

Frye said she is confident her chances of victory are good, even though voters must write her name down on the ballot.

"I have faith in the public," Frye said. "The public knows how to write. I am convinced that the citizens of San Diego are smart enough to figure out how to write Donna Frye in a line and fill out a little oval."

Frye said she hopes to participate in the scheduled mayoral debates.

"I hope the public will raise hell and demand that I be in the debates," she said.

With only five weeks to go until the election, Frye said she is confident she can raise the necessary funding for things like advertising.

A campaign Web site has been set up at www.donnafryeformayor.com.

Candidates React To Frye's Announcement

What impact will Frye's candidacy have on the election?

A write-in campaign is difficult at best, and the questions become not just, "Does she have a chance?" but "How she will affect the support for others?" and "Who will be hurt or helped?"

Political consultant Chris Crotty is skeptical that Frye will win the mayor's seat.

"Unless she has $500,000 in the bank, she'll pull anti-Murphy votes away from Roberts and hand the mayor's office to Dick Murphy on a platter," Crotty said.

The two candidates already on the ballot -- Mayor Dick Murphy and Supervisor Ron Roberts -- said they don't have predictions on how she'll fare or how her candidacy will affect the race.

"We welcome Donna Frye. I don't know what it does ... It's a further indictment of fact that we have a major fiscal problem, irresponsible management," Roberts said.

"I'm not sure how many votes she'll get or whether she'll hurt me or Roberts. It's unclear," Murphy said.

Survey USA Poll Puts Roberts Ahead Of Murphy

This week, 10News conducted a Survey USA poll that asked San Diegans who they would vote support for mayor if the elections were held today.

The results showed that Roberts would win with 46 percent of the vote against Murphy, who got 34 percent of the vote. The poll showed that 20 percent of the people were undecided.

Just one month ago, Murphy had a 13-point lead.

Roberts said, "That's an incredible change, but we're still a ways out. I won't deny it's good news. People understand the city is having one of the worst financial crises ever and Dick Murphy's responsible for that."

"The last two weeks, there's been a lot of negative news about the city pension plan. I would expect that after they understand the solutions we're bringing in, they'll appreciate what we're doing and we'll win the campaign," Murphy told 10News.

Another poll will be conducted in a couple weeks. It may give voters an idea of what Donna Frye's write-in campaign means to the race, according to 10News.