Latest news with #localleadership
Yahoo
09-07-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Stephanie Murphy declares candidacy for Orange County mayor
Former U.S. Rep. Stephanie Murphy, a Democrat who forged a reputation for bipartisanship during her tenure in Congress, declared her candidacy today to succeed Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings, likely becoming the front-runner to lead Florida's fifth-largest county. Murphy, 46, said she has the experience and leadership skills to navigate a bitterly divided political landscape. 'One of the important reasons to have strong leadership at the local level is because of what is happening at the federal and state level,' she said. 'I think you need leaders who have demonstrated the ability to work with anybody who's willing to work with them.' Her declared opponents include Orange County Clerk of Courts Tiffany Moore Russell and Orange County Commissioner Mayra Uribe, both Democrats, and tech entrepreneur Chris Messina, a Republican. Former Congresswoman Val Demings, a rumored candidate to succeed her husband, announced last month she would not run. Murphy had served as a civilian national security specialist in the U.S. Department of Defense and as a business instructor at Rollins College when Democrats chose her to take on 24-year GOP incumbent stalwart John Mica in 2016 and she narrowly won in a upset. She made history as the first Vietnamese-American woman elected to Congress. In her final year in Congress, she served on the Jan. 6 Committee investigating the attack on the U.S. Capitol by supporters of President Donald Trump, who denied he lost the 2020 election. She voted with committee members to recommend prosecution of Trump. Murphy left her House seat by choice. Murphy leaves Congress as bipartisan dealmaker. Could 2024 Senate race beckon? Murphy said Jerry Demings, a fellow Democrat, had done a 'fine job' as mayor leading the county over the past eight years. But the region's rapid growth — the county has an estimated 1.5 million residents — will greatly challenge his successor, she said. 'It's going to be a different next four years than it has been for the last eight,' Murphy said. 'I want people who are growing up and living and working in Orange County to have access to that American dream that the affordability crisis is putting out of their reach.' She said transportation is a critical piece of what makes the community livable. Murphy pushed back against the notion she was now the front-runner to be the county government's elected chief executive. 'I don't take any voter's vote for granted,' she said. 'I'm going to run this campaign the way that I've run every campaign which is with some humility and to start by getting people together and listening to the issues that the community faces, and then offer solutions…' A mother of two children, ages 14 and 11, Murphy did not offer specific plans for the affordability or transportation challenges. 'Orange County is home for me, too, and I am looking forward to running a strong campaign where I talk to everybody in every corner of this county,' she said. 'I hope I get a chance to bring my decades of experience in business and a nonpartisan-results- oriented approach to the important work that has to be done to continue to make Orange County a welcoming place that's livable for everyone.' The mayor's post pays $247,938. shudak@
BBC News
11-06-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
£20m from spending review for Bentilee and Ubberley
A "deserving" area of Stoke-on-Trent will receive £20m of government funding for regeneration and Ubberley was announced as one of 25 "trailblazer neighbourhoods" as part of Chancellor Rachel Reeves's spending government said the funding would would "support improvements people can see on their doorstep, champion local leadership, foster community engagement and strengthen social cohesion"."That is a part of the world that deserves more from the local authority and from government so I'm really pleased that money has been allocated," Labour MP Gareth Snell said. Councillor Jane Ashworth, Labour leader of Stoke-on-Trent City Council, said it was a "truly transformational" sum of money which would make a real difference to people's lives."It is also recognition of the work we have already been doing to empower communities to have more control over the places where they live," she review: Your questions answeredThe Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) said it would work with community leaders in the neighbourhood to develop potential schemes. Snell said further details would come out in the next few days and the projects would be led by the neighbourhood itself."This has to be about what the neighbourhoods need and what they want rather than being from the top down," he added."I think it's a great opportunity for that whole community to take a grip of their future." Follow BBC Stoke & Staffordshire on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.
