Denver's mayor steps into national spotlight
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Mike Johnston speaks at a news briefing at City Hall in February. Photo: Alayna Alvarez/Axios
Denver Mayor Mike Johnston is honing a national reputation and positioning himself as the city's savior.
Why it matters: The mayor's ambitions and style in his first year speak volumes about how he governs, and the early results are drawing ire from critics and even allies.
State of play: Johnston proclaimed he wrote a national playbook on how to handle illegal immigration and declared Denver, under his command, a "national leader" in ending homelessness.
- He led a coalition of mayors to Washington, D.C., last year to meet with White House officials on the border crisis.
- He headed parades and gave away tickets to playoff sports games.
- And he booked a 1,865-seat theater for his inaugural State of the City address, one filled with grandiosity.
Friction point: The aura surrounding the Ivy League-educated Johnston harkens to how he served as a state senator and unsuccessfully ran for governor, with cynics at the state Capitol lamenting what they call his messiah complex.
- We heard from a half-dozen city leaders, who largely agree Johnston is a talented orator — but question his transparency and tendency to rush bold plans, talking first and listening later.
What he's saying: Johnston said he envisions himself much more as the "city's cheerleader" than its savior.
- "My job is to make the case for Denver and to help mobilize people," he told us in a recent interview.
Zoom in: The mayor's approach is evident in how he debuted major policy decisions in his first year.
- He changed the moniker of his "House1000" campaign, in part, because advocates for the homeless criticized the name, arguing that being placed temporarily in an emergency shelter is not housing. Johnston now calls his plan "All in Mile High."
- Another example is the affordable housing sales tax he proposed earlier this month. Even some supporters say the plan was hastily introduced with little input.
The other side: "I think I probably listen more than any mayor in history," Johnston told us, citing nearly 100 town halls his team's hosted in the last year.
- An "entrepreneur at heart," he defended his hurried approach. "The general rule in the startup world is you come up with your first, best idea, you implement it, and then you learn from it and you iterate fast."
The latest: Last week, Johnston was announced as one of about 40 mayors participating in the Bloomberg Harvard City Leadership Initiative — backed by his longtime financial benefactor Mike Bloomberg, the former New York mayor.
- The yearlong program is dubbed a "mini-MBA" and touts alums such as Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg and Biden adviser Keisha Lance Bottoms.
What's next: The national attention is leading pundits to predict Johnston won't serve as mayor for long and instead will set his sights on higher office.
- But Johnston spokesperson Jordan Fuja tells us he is "definitely planning on running for a second term" and has "no plans to go anywhere."