How Demands for Affordable Housing Are Defining Pittsburgh’s Mayoral Race A disproportionate number of Black residents have left the city, and advocates say the next mayor needs to ensure greater access to housing. Joshua Vaughn
How Policing Is Shaping the Pittsburgh Mayoral Race Incumbent Bill Peduto’s policing record is under scrutiny after protests last summer. He is facing what may be his most competitive race yet. Joshua Vaughn
What New York City’s Next Mayor Can Do to Solve the Homelessness Crisis Creating a commission and a new deputy mayor of housing will give directly impacted people a much-needed voice in government—and help ensure a right to housing for all. Shams DaBaron
The Major Real Estate Donors Influencing the St. Louis Mayoral Race Days before the election, campaign finance reports show that real-estate and construction industries favor Cara Spencer over Tishaura Jones. Jerry Iannelli
Anchorage’s Anti-Homeless Movement May Elect the City’s Next Mayor One of the leading candidates for Anchorage’s mayoral race is backed by a far-right Facebook group tied to the U.S. Capitol riot. Jerry Iannelli
Philly Cops Are Solving Fewer Homicides. The City Keeps Paying Them Millions Community members and advocates question why Mayor Jim Kenney and the City Council continue to fund the police department at record levels, despite the department’s low murder solve rate. Joshua Vaughn
Berkeley City Council Passes Sweeping Reforms to Limit Police Traffic Stops In an effort to end systemic racism, the California city will aim to reduce the number of police-involved traffic stops for expired registrations and other small violations. Joshua Vaughn
Police Violence Puts the Heat on Rochester Mayor as She Seeks a Third Term Months after footage emerged of officers fatally suffocating Daniel Prude, police were caught on video pepper-spraying a 9-year-old girl. Advocates say the incident highlights the shortcomings of Mayor Lovely Warren’s crisis response team. Meg O'Connor
How the Killing of Breonna Taylor Is Reshaping Louisville Politics The political paradigm emerging in Louisville is being formed by newcomers to local politics. Jerry Iannelli
New York City Mayoral Candidates Blast de Blasio’s Housing Record In a forum with people experiencing homelessness, Democratic candidates criticized the mayor’s affordable housing plans, embraced a ‘right to housing,’ and rejected police intervention on homelessness calls. Chris Gelardi
Compton Joins the Growing Number of U.S. Cities to Launch a Guaranteed Income Program The California city began distributing out up to $600 monthly to low-income residents. Jerry Iannelli
Portland Civil Rights Activists Want A Mayor Who Can Stand Up To Police Mayor Ted Wheeler’s popularity has declined after a summer of protests against police violence in the Oregon city. Elizabeth Weill-Greenberg
Feuding With Donald Trump Is Not Police Reform Mayors of liberal cities love to criticize the president’s incendiary law-and-order rhetoric, but do precious little to check police violence and bloated budgets in their own backyards. Jay Willis
Lori Lightfoot’s Actions Don’t Match Her Rhetoric About Police Like her Democratic mayoral counterparts in Portland, Atlanta, Los Angeles, and New York, Lightfoot has condemned police violence outside her borders, while using law enforcement to suppress demonstrations in her own city. Elizabeth Weill-Greenberg
Seattle Mayor Known As ‘Tear Gas Jenny’ For Police Treatment Of Protesters Has Troubled History As A Federal Prosecutor As U.S. attorney in Seattle, Durkan prosecuted a severely mentally ill man in a terrorism case using an informant convicted of child sex abuse—and claimed to have reformed the same Seattle Police Department that has tear-gassed peaceful protesters for weeks. Jerry Iannelli
Atlanta’s Mayor Wants $13 Million More For Police. Four Officers Were Just Fired For Using Excessive Force. Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms has asked for the budget increase amid ongoing local and national reports of police violence against protesters. Ko Bragg
The Toll That Curfews Have Taken On Homeless Americans The country’s homeless population was already struggling to access services during the pandemic. Kira Lerner
Mayors Who Care About Child Separation Should Look in Their Own Backyards Families are torn apart by the criminal justice system every day. Josie Duffy Rice
