Malik Evans
Malik Evans | |
|---|---|
 | |
| 71stMayor of Rochester | |
| Assumed office January 1, 2022 | |
| Preceded by | James Smith |
| Member of theRochester City Council at-large | |
| In office January 1, 2018[1]– January 1, 2022 | |
| President of theRochester City School DistrictBoard of Education | |
| In office 2008–2013 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | February 4, 1980 Rochester, New York,U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse | Shawanda Evans[1] |
| Children | 2 |
| Alma mater | Nazareth College University of Rochester |
| Profession | Bank officer |
Malik D. Evansis an American politician and banker who is the 71st and currentMayorofRochester, New York.A member of theDemocratic Party,Evans previously served on the Rochester City Council as an at-large member and on the Rochester City School Board including several years as its president.
Early life
[edit]Evans was born to Gwendolyn Evans and Lawrance Lee Evans Sr., a minister who founded the First Community Interfaith Institute focusing on social justice and two time political candidate for theNew York State AssemblyagainstGary Proudand Rochester City School Board in the 1970s. Evans attendedJoseph C. Wilson Magnet High School,graduating in 1998, theUniversity of Rochester,graduating in 2002 with an undergraduate degree andNazareth University,graduating from the School of Management.[2][3][4]Malik Evans is a member ofAlpha Phi AlphaFraternity, Inc.
Career
[edit]Early career
[edit]In 1996, at age 16, Evans helped found the City/County Youth Council which later became Youth Voice, One Vision and the Mayor's Youth Advisory Council. While enrolled at the University of Rochester, Evans joined MayorBill Johnson's taskforce on city's nightclubs, studying options and code enforcement for black clubs and the Mayor's Council on Race and Ethnicity. Also while at the University of Rochester, Evans was part of a 200-student sit-in outside University PresidentThomas Jackson's office in 1999 calling for the preservation of the Frederick Douglass Institute for African and African-American Studies which was facing elimination at the time.[2]He also previously worked as a legislative aide to former councilman Wade Norwood as one of his first jobs.[1]
In 2003, Evans was first elected to theRochester City School Districtschool board. At age 23, he was the youngest person voted onto the board in its history.[5]He served a total of 14 years on the board and was its president for five years from 2008 to 2013.[1]During his tenure on the school board, the RCSD improved its graduation rates to over 50%.[6]Evans also worked as the Prosperity Program Manager atESL Federal Credit Unionand atM&T Bank.[7]After being elected to the city council in 2018, Evans was the Finance Committee chairman of the city council, a role which he retained until taking office as mayor.
2021 Rochester mayoral election
[edit]Evans declared his candidacy for mayor of Rochester onMartin Luther King Jr. Day2021.[8]He ran with the slogans of"restoring transparency"and"building bridges",also prioritizing economic development through providing job opportunities for youths and reducinggun violenceby cracking down on illegal guns.[9]Despite incumbent Rochester mayorLovely Warren's numerous controversies, Evans refused to directly attack the mayor during his campaign and the election debate, instead focusing on promoting his platform.[5]
On June 22, 2021, Evans handily defeated Warren in the Democratic primary, receiving 66% of the vote as opposed to Warren's 34%.[5][10]Despite Evans outspending and out-raising Warren, some still expected Warren to win, given her past two election victories.[11]Evansran unopposedin the general election, as theWorking Families Partyalso threw its support behind him and no other party filed to run.[11][12]As expected, Evans won the election on November 2, 2021.[13]
Mayor of Rochester
[edit]Evans was officially sworn in as mayor on January 1, 2022.[14]As mayor, he has attempted to end the crisis of substandard housing in the city. The majority of Rochester residents are renters, and a city commission found that half of rental properties in the city were substandard. In February 2022, a housing task force was formed to develop new programs. Based on the task force's recommendations, the city government hired a housing attorney to prosecute landlords with code violations on their properties and began subsidizing the construction of new housing stock for city residents.[15][16]
References
[edit]- ^abcdFreile, Victoria."He handily defeated Lovely Warren in mayoral primary. Things to know about Malik Evans".Democrat and Chronicle.RetrievedJune 26,2021.
- ^abFanelli, Gino."This is Malik Evans: Everything you ever wanted to know about Rochester's next mayor".CITY News.RetrievedOctober 28,2021.
- ^"News Archive".www2.naz.edu.RetrievedOctober 28,2021.
- ^"UR alum and mayoral candidate Malik Evans encourages UR students to make a difference through politics".Campus Times.March 8, 2021.RetrievedOctober 28,2021.
- ^abcAndreatta, David; Moule, Jeremy (June 23, 2021)."Malik Evans trounces Mayor Lovely Warren in Democratic primary, paves way to City Hall".www.wxxinews.org.RetrievedJune 30,2021.
- ^"Councilman Defeats Indicted Rochester Mayor in Dem. Primary".USNews.com.June 23, 2021.
- ^Adams, Thomas (May 1, 2014)."ESL hires Evans for new business growth position".Rochester Business Journal.RetrievedJune 25,2021.
- ^Gorbman, Randy."Warren gets Democratic party's designation in Rochester mayoral race".CITY News.RetrievedJune 9,2021.
- ^"Mayoral candidate Malik Evans introduces plan to address illegal guns".RochesterFirst.May 20, 2021.RetrievedJune 30,2021.
- ^Ferré-Sadurní, Luis (June 23, 2021)."The embattled mayor of Rochester, who had been under indictment, loses handily".The New York Times.RetrievedJuly 2,2021.
- ^abSharp, Brian."Malik Evans wins big over incumbent Lovely Warren in primary for Rochester mayor".Democrat and Chronicle.RetrievedJuly 2,2021.
- ^"Our Candidates".
- ^Sharp, Brian."'Let's get to work': Malik Evans savors sound victory in Rochester mayor race ".Democrat and Chronicle.RetrievedNovember 6,2021.
- ^Gorbman, Randy (January 1, 2022)."Malik Evans sworn into office as Rochester's new mayor".WXXI News.RetrievedJanuary 2,2022.
- ^Weaver, Alexandra (February 15, 2022)."Rochester Mayor announces new Housing Quality Task Force".WHEC-TV.RetrievedApril 5,2023.
- ^Dewberry, Deanna (February 8, 2023)."Evans:" The tiger has been released! "Rochester's mayor says the city can now go after bad landlords with" Saber Tooth Tiger teeth. "".WHEC-TV.RetrievedApril 5,2023.
External links
[edit]- Living people
- African-American mayors in New York (state)
- Mayors of Rochester, New York
- 21st-century American politicians
- African-American bankers
- African-American city council members in New York (state)
- New York (state) Democrats
- Politicians from Rochester, New York
- Rochester City Council members (New York)
- 21st-century African-American politicians
- 1980 births
- Nazareth University alumni