Election Central
November 2011 Elections: Democratic Mayors
DEMOCRATIC MAYORS MATTER: NEW DEMOCRATIC MAYORS
With over 150 mayoral elections across the country in November, we are thrilled to have 46 new Democratic Mayors! Of all the new mayors elected, 62% are Democrats. In five cities, Democratic candidates challenged Republican Incumbents and won by presenting a clear Democratic alternative. Three cities- Milford, CT, Muncie, IN, and Knoxville, TN have their first Democratic Mayor in over 20 years! Democratic Mayor-Elect Madeline Rogero will be the first female Mayor of Knoxville, Tennessee. Read more about her in our Democratic Mayors Matter below.
Congratulations to all Democratic Mayors who won races in 2011!
Greg Stanton- Phoenix, AZ
Sharon Wolcott- Surprise, AZ
Jonathan Rothschild- Tucson, AZ
Daniel Juarez- Hawthorne, CA
John P. Marchand- Livermore, CA
Alan L. Nagy- Newark, CA
Gary Phillips- San Rafael, CA
Michael C. Tetreau- Fairfield, CT
Leo Vincent Diana- Manchester, CT
Daniel T. Drew- Middletown, CT
Benjamin Blake- Milford, CT
Timothy O'Brien- New Britain, CT
Neil M. O'Leary- Waterbury, CT
Karen M. Freeman-Wilson- Gary, IN
Dean E. Jessup- Lawrence, IN
Ronald A. Meer- Michigan City, IN
Craig R. Fry- Mishawaka, IN
Dennis Tyler- Muncie, IN
Jeff M. Gahan- New Albany, IN
Pete Buttigieg- South Bend, IN
Alex Morse- Holyoke, MA
Stephen Zanni- Methuen, MA
Michael Brennan- Portland, ME
Barry L. Brickner- Farmington Hills, MI
Martin J. Griffin- Jackson, MI
William W Moehle-Brighton, NY
Clinton I. Young Jr.- Mount Vernon, NY
Andrew Stewart- Orangetown, NY
Lou Rosamilia- Troy, NY
Robert Palmieri- Utica, NY
Sheila M. Meegan- West Seneca, NY
Mike Spano- Yonkers, NY
Holly Brinda- Elyria, OH
Thomas H. Nagel- Fairborn, OH
Michael P. Summers- Lakewood, OH
Chase Ritenauer- Lorain, OH
James H. Gilsdorf- Marion, OH
Timothy J. DeGeeter- Parma, OH
Sara Drew- Stow, OH
Doug Franklin- Warren, OH
John Linder- Chester, PA
Vaughn D. Spencer- Reading, PA
Madeline Rogero- Knoxville, TN
Kelli Linville- Bellingham, WA
Stephen Buxbaum- Olympia, WA
Democratic Mayors Matter! Michael Hancock
Denver, Colorado
Winning by almost 20,000 votes, Michael Hancock was sworn in as Denver’s 45th mayor on July 18. He is a born leader who despite adversity and tragedy has always found a way to triumph. Growing up in Denver, Michael has always been an advocate for the people and businesses of Denver. He served two terms as President on the Denver City Council and was the youngest CEO of an Urban League chapter nationwide.
During his time on the City Council, Michael led efforts to support businesses and expand economic opportunities in downtown Denver, Stapleton, and Denver International Airport. He fought to end the foreclosure crisis and mortgage fraud. Michael worked with Better Denver, a neighborhood improvement program, on nearly 300 projects, creating thousands of jobs across Denver. He also sought to strengthen neighborhoods by ensuring fair and equitable delivery of services and facilities such as libraries, road repairs, trash collection, and police services. Michael was also the leader on innovative-schools legislation.
As mayor, Michael is bringing different groups together to find common-sense solutions to the complicated challenges facing Denver. He is confident that by working together the people of Denver can build on their past and create a world-class city of tomorrow. Michael is a strong leader with a collaborative approach to problem solving and his vision for Denver will help move the city forward.
Democratic Mayors Matter! Alvin Brown Brings Progress
Alvin Brown won the Mayoral race in Jacksonville, Florida by over 1500 votes on May 18th. Brown became the first African American Mayor of Jacksonville on July 1 of this year. He is the first Democrat to hold the seat since 1991. "I am excited about the opportunity that we have to take Jacksonville to the next level, and I will work with people from every corner of this community to move Jacksonville forward," Brown said in his acceptance speech.
Those who have seen Brown in action describe him as a people person, able to talk with just about anyone. His leadership style reflects this ability, as he makes a point to listen to many viewpoints. Because of these conversations with neighbors and local businesses, job creation and economic development for Jacksonville became the cornerstone of his campaign.
Duval County Republican Chairman Lenny Curry, and supporter of Brown’s opponent, Mike Hogan, argued that this election was about “sending a message that Florida is red.” Brown’s team had a different idea, focusing their campaign on the future of Jacksonville. David Beattie, Brown’s pollster, added, the campaign “allowed us to talk about who’s going to support public schools in Duval – the guy who cut public school funding while in the Legislature or the one who has two kids in schools.”
By representing the values of the Democratic Party to the fullest, Brown was able to turn a conservative area blue, and we at the NCDM welcome him to our team. Brown has already brought progress to Jacksonville through his victory, but we are confident this is just the beginning for Mayor Brown.
