Mayor Bibb's reelection path clears in 2025 race
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Mayor Justin Bibb campaigning for Ohio reproductive freedom in 2023. Photo: Sam Allard/Axios
Cleveland Mayor Justin Bibb formally filed his petitions for reelection this week and will likely waltz into a second term with minimal effort.
State of play: The Cuyahoga County Board of Elections published an unofficial list of candidates shortly after the filing deadline Wednesday.
Between the lines: Two potential mayoral challengers would have made for a more interesting contest had they decided to run:
- Council President Blaine Griffin, who chose to waltz into another term himself on the city's legislative body — he's running unopposed in the new Ward 6.
- Former State Sen. Nina Turner, whose interest in a mayoral campaign was always speculative.
The intrigue: Bibb does have one challenger, Republican Laverne Gore, a serial candidate who ran for Cleveland mayor in 2009.
- Notwithstanding her lack of name recognition, funding and infrastructure, her party affiliation dooms her campaign in Cleveland.
- The only two Republican candidates to run in recent memory were David Lynch in 2005, who mustered 8% of the primary vote; and Robert Kilo in 2017, who managed 5%.
- When Gore last ran for mayor, she did so as a Democrat.
Flashback: This year will be a stark contrast to 2021, when Bibb and six other mayoral candidates battled through a monthslong primary season full of lively forums and debates.
Reality check: With only two candidates in 2025, there won't even be a mayoral primary. Bibb and Gore will meet in the Nov. 4 general election.
Zoom out: On the city council side, incumbents will face each other in two races.
- Richard Starr and Rebecca Maurer in the new Ward 5.
- Anthony Hairston and Mike Polensek in the new Ward 10, though Polensek tells Signal Cleveland he may decide to drop out.
Also, State Rep. Juanita Brent filed petitions in the new Ward 1 and will challenge incumbent Joe Jones, who was the subject of a workplace misconduct investigation this year.