Southfield

Southfield mayor chosen as Bernero's running mate

By Jennie Miller
C & G Staff Writer

SOUTHFIELD — Southfield Mayor Brenda Lawrence has been selected to run alongside Democratic gubernatorial candidate Virg Bernero in his bid to take the reins of the state of Michigan.

“I’m very excited,” Lawrence said Monday, in the car on the way to Flint to start campaigning. After that, the duo is headed to Bay City, and is expected to return to Southfield on Wednesday.

Bernero, the mayor of Lansing, conducted an “extensive and thorough” search for his lieutenant governor candidate, according to his campaign spokesman, Cullen Schwartz, and after interviews with six individuals, he felt that Lawrence was the best to take on the position.

“Mayor Lawrence shares Virg’s passion for fighting for working people and small-business owners on Main Street and is someone that Virg can work with extremely well,” Schwartz said.

Lawrence said there many similarities between her and Bernero and their experiences in local government. Their cities both have AA+ bond ratings, she said.

“We know how to make adjustments and cut costs to balance the budget,” she said. “Cities are the core of our state, and as mayors, we are the chief executives of our cities. We operate with a legislative body — our councils — so we understand that legislative process very well. … Lansing is broken, and we feel that as a team of mayors, we can go and shake Lansing up.”

It was Lawrence’s experience in economic development and budget balancing that stood out in Bernero’s eyes, Schwartz said.

“Mayor Lawrence has earned statewide and national acclaim for her work as mayor,” he said. “Both Virg and Mayor Lawrence have balanced their budgets, on time, every year without raising taxes, and both have impressive job creation credentials in each of their respective cities.”

There are problems with the way the state government is running, Lawrence said, and it comes down to a lack of focus and priorities.

“The job of Lansing is to provide good government that will support the needs of the state,” Lawrence said, pointing out that the foreclosure crisis has “ripped apart” communities throughout the state. “It seems that decision-making is being side-tracked by partisanship. We really need leadership that can go in, roll up their sleeves and take care of the business of the state.”

The focus should be on small businesses, she said, despite some who say the campaign is anti-business.

“The fastest-growing industry in the country and in the state of Michigan — it’s going to save our economy — are the small businesses,” Lawrence said. “We need to find a way to provide loans to these small businesses who are trying to survive. … Bernero is pushing for (a state bank). It’s worked in another state — North Dakota. … We are standing together and saying we represent Main Street with a passion. We are very energized with our message. And if we are fighting for Main Street, we are fighting for small businesses.”

Over the course of the next nine weeks, while Lawrence takes to the campaign trail with Bernero, she said she will not stray from her duties in Southfield.

“I was walking in a community event this weekend and attended a grand opening of a restaurant last night,” Lawrence said Monday. “My focus will never be off of Southfield. I’m going to campaign hard 24 hours a day and I’m going to continue to focus on Southfield as I have the last nine years as mayor.”

Lawrence has served as mayor of Southfield for nine years, currently in her third term after unseating longtime Mayor Don Fracassi in 2001 and becoming the first female mayor and first black mayor of the city. Prior to that, she served on the Southfield City Council, as well as the Southfield Board of Education. She retired three years ago from a position with the U.S. Postal Service. She ran an unsuccessful campaign for Oakland County Executive in 2008, defeated by longtime Executive L. Brooks Patterson.

Bernero and Lawrence will face Republican gubernatorial candidate Rick Snyder, an Ann Arbor businessman, and state Rep. Brian Calley in November.

If Bernero and Lawrence win their bid, the position of mayor of Southfield would be temporarily filled by whoever is the council president at that time.

“The council president shall be the acting mayor, and then the council can either call a special election to fill the vacancy for the remainder of the term, or if there is an election that will be held within one year, they can wait until the election,” said Southfield City Clerk Nancy Banks, adding that the next election in Southfield would either be in August or September, depending on legislation in Lansing seeking to change all September elections to August. If council called a special election in May, “it would be very expensive, and I would be very surprised if our council would approve that,” Banks said.

For his part, Fracassi said he wishes Lawrence well in the campaign.

“I think it’s quite an honor for her to be selected as his running mate,” Fracassi said. “I think that it is a very special thing to be chosen by a gubernatorial candidate, and I wish her well. I wish her good luck in the election.”

He hopes that over the next nine weeks Lawrence is able to juggle both the campaign and her duties as mayor.

“You go after these things and you have to keep in mind the business that you’re in charge of at the same time,” he said. “Try not to ignore the city — that’s your first responsibility. … Being council president, in the absence of the mayor, you take over some of the mayor’s duties. When she ran for the county executive, it was kind of local, and it didn’t interfere with the operations of the city. I really don’t know how to weigh her absence in running for lieutenant governor — she’s going to be everywhere the next couple of months — I guess we’ll just have to wait and see.”

You can reach C & G Staff Writer Jennie Miller at jmiller@candgnews.com or at (586)279-1108.