Mayor 2017 | Race for leadership of Youngstown brewing

By GRAIG GRAZIOSI

ggraziosi@vindy.com

YOUNGSTOWN

Above the intersection of Meridian Road and Mahoning Avenue, a flattering headshot of Sean McKinney greets motorists as they cross from Austintown into the city of Youngstown.

The image of the former building and grounds commissioner – now one of four city of Youngstown mayoral candidates – is one of the few obvious, outward signs that a race for leadership of the city is brewing beneath the business-as-usual.

As the summer fades and Labor Day – traditionally viewed as the unofficial pistol shot for election-season political races – approaches, the familiar symbols of campaigns will gain prominence.

More and more brown signs promoting Jamael Tito Brown, the Democratic Party’s mayoral candidate, will populate yards across the city, and more blue-and-gold shirts proclaiming former city Councilwoman Janet Tarpley’s mayoral ambitions will be visible at public events.

Cecil Monroe is expected to run another low-key campaign.

Bases of power are beginning to coalesce, giving some indication of where November’s battle lines will be drawn; Brown with massive institutional support from the Democratic Party and local church and community organizations; McKinney, with the vocal support of nearly half the City Council and growing visibility throughout the city, and Tarpley with a strong record and the support of her former ward.

Though the upcoming campaign is on the minds of many individuals throughout the city, the inevitable public discussions concerning candidates’ pasts, their qualifications, their stumbles – these conversations have yet to surface in any substantial way. But this is the quiet before the shots ring out, when the leaders gather their forces and draw up plans for the battle.

The PRIMARY AND THE PARTY CRASHERS

Though each of the candidates has a built-in voter base thanks to their prior employments, Brown’s successful ousting of McNally during the primary election earned him the endorsement of the Democratic Party, widening his base to include party-loyal voters.

William Binning, retired Youngstown State University political science department chairman and former Mahoning County Republican Party chairman, said the value of being the Democratic Party’s recognized candidate shouldn’t be underestimated.

“There’s a lot of voters who are going to stay loyal to party candidates, regardless of who they are,” Binning said. “That label adds value to his campaign.”

While Brown’s Democratic support may win him party loyalists, it doesn’t ensure him a victory in November.

The voters soundly rejected the party’s endorsed candidates during the May election, choosing nonendorsed candidates for president of city council, DeMaine Kitchen, as well as Carla Baldwin for municipal court judge on top of electing Brown.

Mahoning County Democratic Party Chairman David Betras earned the ire of several major black political organizations in 2013 after removing former City Council members Artis Gilliam, then Councilwoman Annie Gilliam and Councilman T.J. Rodgers from their positions on the Democratic Party’s executive committee for choosing to support Brown over the party-endorsed candidate McNally and threatened to remove Jaladah Aslam, then the party’s vice president of labor relations, from her position.

It’s unclear whether the voters chose to reject the party or the candidates, and whether similar voting trends will emerge during the upcoming election.

What is clear is that, despite the endorsement, Brown will not be able to count on the support of more than half of Youngstown’s council members come November.

Councilwoman Anita Davis, D-6th, has said she will support Tarpley, her predecessor on city council.

In a more public display of defiance that cost them their seats on the county Democratic Party’s executive committee, Councilman Julius Oliver, D-1st; Councilwoman Lauren McNally, D-5th; and Councilwoman Basia Adamczak, D-7th, made their support for McKinney known when they marched alongside him in Boardman’s Memorial Day parade.

Though Betras’ decision to remove the council members from the committee remains consistent with his policies from 2013, what was noticeably absent were the condemnations from many of the organizations that voiced disapproval in 2013.

Despite the removal, Oliver said he had no reservations about his support.

“Sean came alongside me and helped me out a lot when I first started,” Oliver said. “He’s about integrity. He’s not a part of the ‘old boys’ club’ that makes decisions in the city; he’s about making a real difference. I won’t apologize for supporting the guy I think is best for the job.”

Adamczak offered similar sentiments, suggesting voters would come to support McKinney once they learned more about him over the course of the election.

While McKinney will have the rest of the campaign season to continue logging face time with supporters – apart from his billboards and bus ads, McKinney has also been traveling door to door to meet with voters and frequently shows up at community events like the Panerathon – Brown and Tarpley are both well-known to their constituents already and, particularly in Brown’s case, can get them to the polls.

In addition to the support Brown already has, Betras said he will have the total support of the party and its resources.

“[National Democratic Party chairman] Tom Perez will know how important it is for Tito Brown to get elected, David Pepper [state Democratic Party chairman] will know how important it is for Tito Brown to get elected, and I know how important it is for Tito Brown to get elected,” Betras said. “He has and will continue to have the total support of the party.”

SHORING UP SUPPORT

As former council members, both Brown and Tarpley have a potential built-in support base in their former constituents. Tarpley, who served on council until her term limit forced her out, still has strong ties in her former ward and scattered throughout the city.

Brown won his former ward in the primary, taking 69 percent of the votes. He received the same amount during his previous mayoral bid, suggesting his command over the North Side ward will continue through November.

Beyond his former constituents, Brown also has significant institutional support from both church and state.

The Rev. Ken Simon, pastor of New Bethel Baptist Church, prefers to take a neutral stance on individual candidates, but a Vindicator photo of Rev. Mr. Simon and an elated Brown celebrating after hearing the May primary results suggests he has an unofficial favorite going into the November election.

Mr. Simon doesn’t disagree. While he also believes Tarpley to be qualified for the position, Mr. Simon personally supports Brown.

What makes the pastor’s preference particularly potent is that Mr. Simon and New Bethel have been central organizers in the Youngstown black community for more than two decades.

“The church has always been at the forefront of activism in the African-American community,” Mr. Simon said. “Regarding civil rights, social justice, politics ... the church has always been a center of organizing.”

Mr. Simon is a leading member in the Community Mobilization Coalition, a group of black and Hispanic churches and community groups that works to increase voter turnout in their communities.

Though the group officially is nonpartisan, the support Brown has within the religious community will likely influence, intentionally or not, individuals within the organization to support the Democratic candidate.

Rosetta Carter, the lead organizer at the Alliance for Congregational Transformation In Our Neighborhoods, a member organization of the CMC, hasn’t publicly said who she’ll support, but she’s offered high praise for a number of the candidates.

“Janet [Tarpley] would make a good mayor. We know her record on council. We can see what she’s done,” Carter said. “But Tito Brown also did good work during his time on the school board, and Sean McKinney is very capable. He was mentored by [former Mayor] Jay Williams, and I’m confident he can work effectively with anyone regardless of their race.”

Despite the candidates’ racial homogeny – this will be the first time in the city’s history all mayoral candidates are black — race may still factor into the campaign.

In the May primary election, city wards whose populations were predominantly black overwhelmingly supported Brown, and wards with primarily white residents overwhelmingly supported McNally.

Carter and Mr. Simon agree that race shouldn’t factor into the selection of a leader for the city, arguing the most qualified candidate with the best ideas and strongest record of service should take the reins.

“You’ll always have people who are going to vote for someone because they share a religion with them, or because they’ve known the candidate or their family their entire lives, or because of their race or gender,” Mr. Simon said. “But I believe that the majority of the voters in Youngstown want to look beyond their color blinders and vote based on qualifications. Racism keeps us from tapping into the fullness of our resources in our community.”

CANDIDATE PROFILES

Sean McKinney

McKinney spent more than a decade working as the city’s buildings and grounds commissioner before resigning last April in preparation for his mayoral bid. Though this year’s race will be his first attempt at an elected office, McKinney said he had considered a run for the city’s top spot in 2013.

McKinney was hired in 2006 by former Mayor Jay Williams, the first black mayor of Youngstown and the city’s first independent mayor since 1922. Hoping to mirror the unexpected victory of the man that brought him into government service, McKinney also is running as an independent with hopes of defeating the party-endorsed Brown.

Jamael Tito Brown

Brown became the Democratic party’s mayoral candidate after beating incumbent Mayor John McNally — then the party’s endorsed candidate — during the primary election last May.

The primary wasn’t the first time the men’s names were opposite each other on a ballot page; the two faced off in a 2013 mayoral race as well, which McNally won by 142 votes.

Brown currently serves as the director of operations at the Mahoning County Treasurer’s Office, and before that was appointed president of city council after serving as the 3rd Ward councilman for 31⁄2 years.

Janet Tarpley

Tarpley, who also is running as an independent, is a well-seasoned candidate running in her fourth election.

In 2007, Tarpley beat Paul Pancoe for his seat as Youngstown’s 6th Ward councilman.

After reaching her city council term limit, Tarpley set her sights on the Ohio House of Representatives and ran in the Democratic primary with hopes of eventually representing the 58th district.

She would ultimately lose that race to current state Rep. Michele Lepore-Hagan.

Tarpley refrained from entering the 2017 mayoral primary race, fearing she would split the vote between herself and Brown, ensuring a victory for the incumbent McNally.

Cecil Monroe

Monroe is the senior pastor at the Higher Learning Church in Youngstown.

Like Brown, this will not be Monroe’s first mayoral run, as he previously ran in 2009 and 2013.

Though receiving fewer than 40 votes between both elections, Monroe is running again, as an independent, counting on a larger turnout this year.

He has a bachelor’s degree from Youngstown State University in religious studies.