Malik Evans, Rochester’s Mayor-Elect
By Anya Niven
As the campaign website
of mayoral-elect Malik Evans loads onto my computer screen, I see bold blue
text that reads “Building Bridges.” Along with Evans’s campaign statement, this
text overlays a photo of Rochester’s Frederick Douglass Memorial Bridge. A “Rochesterian” born and bred, Evans has been
an active member of Rochester’s political community since his teenage years. At
16 years old, Evans was already making powerful contributions to his city by
assisting in the formation of the City/County Youth Council. Evans continued
his political contributions throughout his young adulthood and in 2003 became
the “youngest person ever”[1] elected as a member of the
Rochester Board of Education at age 23. Continuing his work within the
Rochester City Council since his first election has made Evans a developed and
familiar leader in the Rochester community.
Malik Evans announced his
campaign for Mayor of Rochester in January of 2021 and constructed it around
the idea of “building bridges” to mend the many divides faced in the Rochester community.
This mayoral election was situated in the wake of many major economic and
social changes in Rochester, including the effects of the Covid-19 crisis, the
aftermath of the killing of Rochester citizen Daniel Prude, and citywide
protests against police brutality. The people of Rochester were looking for
change, especially in their leaders, and many found the qualities they wanted in
Malik Evans’ message. Running on a platform based on establishing trust,
transparency, and accountability among the City Council and political leaders
in Rochester, especially in the climate surrounding the election, was extremely
successful for the mayor-elect. Evans’ most popular proposed initiatives
throughout his campaign were focused on the youth of Rochester. Rochester First
detailed his proposed initiatives in an article in June, explaining three
programs Evans intends to work on with his mayoral position. The first is his “Youth
to Work Program” which aims to create thousands of jobs for young people in
Rochester within months of his assumption of office. Evans also proposes a reinforcement
of the “teen court” program, an innovative teen-based accountability program
that teaches young people about the criminal justice system and is effective in
reducing youth violence rates with education.
Both of these programs
proposed by Evans will work together to build a connected and supportive
network of young adults in Rochester and assist them as they become
participatory members of local politics and the economy. In a press conference
early in his campaign, Evans reiterated a famous quote of abolitionist
Frederick Douglass, saying, “Douglass said it is easier to build strong
children than repair broken men, and I’ll add women to that as well.”[2] Evans’ development of these missions and the
promises he made to the people of Rochester gained traction throughout the
spring and in the June 2021 primary, Evans beat incumbent Lovely Warren in the
polls with 66.1% of the vote. Since Evans ran unopposed in the general election
held on November 2nd, Evans officially won with 98.75% of the vote,
with the other 1.43% being write-in nominations. Even before his victory, Evans
was passionate about improving Rochester and was even more adamant that this
had to begin with Rochester’s youth. His initiatives will promote youth employment,
support, and stability to encourage the building of empowered young voices and
a strong workforce. With his assumption of office on January 1st, 2022,
Evans will “get to work” as promised and begin to put his plans in place to
bridge the divides in Rochester.
Citations
Andreatta, David, and Jeremy Moule. “Malik Evans Trounces
Mayor Lovely Warren in Democratic Primary, Paves Way to City Hall.” WXXI
News [Rochester, NY], 23 June 2021,
www.wxxinews.org/post/malik-evans-trounces-mayor-lovely-warren-democratic-primary-paves-way-city-hall.
“‘Let’s Get to Work’:
Malik Evans Savors Sound Victory in Rochester Mayor Race.” Democrat and
Chronicle [Rochester, NY], 2 Nov. 2021, www.democratandchronicle.com/story/news/2021/11/03/rochester-ny-mayor-elect-malik-evans-wins-soundly-promises-collaboration/6232189001.
“Malik Evans – for Mayor.” Malik Evans for Mayor, The
Committee To Elect Malik Evans, malikevans.org. Accessed 12 Nov. 2021.
“Councilmember Malik Evans, At-Large.” City of Rochester,
City of Rochester, www.cityofrochester.gov/article.aspx?id=21474836831.
Accessed 11 Nov. 2021.
Driffill, Matt, and Olivia Doerr. “Mayoral Candidate Malik
Evans Pitches Youth Programs as Solution to Violence in Rochester.” Rochester
First [Rochester, NY], 13 May 2021, www.rochesterfirst.com/news/your-local-election-hq/watch-live-mayoral-candidate-evans-outlines-plan-to-address-violence-in-rochester.
[1] Andreatta, David, and Jeremy Moule.
“Malik Evans Trounces Mayor Lovely Warren in Democratic Primary, Paves Way to
City Hall.” WXXI News, 23 June 2021
[2] Driffill, Matt, and Olivia Doerr. “Mayoral Candidate Malik
Evans Pitches Youth Programs as Solution to Violence in Rochester.” Rochester
First, 13 May 2021
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