Justin Bibb returned to the roots of his first mayoral campaign as he launched his bid for a second term at a low-key rally in Cleveland’s Mill Creek development Saturday morning.
Bibb, 38, has quietly been laying the groundwork for his reelection campaign for more than a year, raising money and holding neighborhood meet and greets. Saturday marked the start of a more public phase of that effort.
As the mayor made his case for reelection in 2025, he also nodded to the future. This election was just as important as the ones coming in 2026 and 2028, he said.
“If we want a state government that shares our values, we got to get out the vote this year,” he said. “If we want a governor in Columbus who shares our values, we got to get out the vote this year. If we want a president in the White House that shares our values, it starts right now.”
Around 50 people gathered to hear the mayor speak outside the home of a campaign staffer in Mill Creek. Bibb recounted his political rise as a first-time candidate who won a crowded race for City Hall four years ago.
During that campaign, “we knocked on a whole lot of damn doors across the city,” Bibb said. He recalled one voter from 2021 who urged him to keep his promises and focus on the basics, such as public safety and mowing grass on vacant lots.
“We didn’t get it right all the time, but since January 3 of 2022, I believe we have done what we said we were going to do,” Bibb said, referring to the day he took office.
The mayor rattled off a checklist of things he has done in his first term. Some were big-ticket efforts, such as raising police pay and setting aside tens of millions for housing construction. Others were more technical: restarting the recycling program, redesigning the city’s website and allowing the electronic signing of city documents.
He did not specifically mention the new system of civilian oversight of police wrought by a voter-passed charter amendment, a major issue in the 2021 race. Four years ago, Bibb endorsed Issue 24, which gave new investigative and disciplinary powers to the Community Police Commission.
Police oversight has been a source of conflict now that Bibb is mayor. His administration shook up the membership of the police commission and butted heads with the monitor who oversaw the city’s 2015 consent decree.
Bibb eyes federal headwinds, stays out of City Council races
Bibb, who is president of the Democratic Mayors Association, said the city faces headwinds in the form of federal funding cuts.
“We can’t wait for Washington to come solve our problems. We have to save ourselves in the great city of Cleveland, Ohio,” he said. “Together, not just me as the mayor, not just my amazing administration, we’re going to stand in the gap.”
Rev. C. Jay Matthews, the pastor of Mt. Sinai-Friendship United Church, delivered the benediction, and United Auto Workers official Marjorie Chambers spoke before the mayor. Council Member Kevin Bishop, who represents the area, was the only Cleveland City Council representative to attend the mayor’s kickoff.
Bibb will face Laverne Gore, a Cleveland Republican who has previously run for mayor and Congress, in the Nov. 4 general election. Bigger political names, first among them Council President Blaine Griffin, opted not to challenge Bibb for the mayor’s seat.
All City Council seats in Cleveland’s newly drawn 15 wards are on the ballot. With two open seats, two pairs of showdowns between incumbent council members, the races could reshape council’s makeup.
For now, Bibb is not getting involved. Asked during an interview with reporters if he would be endorsing in the City Council races, Bibb replied, “not at this time.”
The campaign consultant who emceed Saturday’s event, Kenn Johnson, introduced Bibb as “our mayor and the next — wherever we ascend.”
But the mayor also isn’t dropping any hints about electoral aspirations beyond 2025.
“I’m thinking about one election at a time and all the work I have to do to complete the challenges and the task at hand,” he said.
