Mayor Scott kicks off re-election campaign ahead of 2024 Baltimore mayoral election
BALTIMORE -- Mayor Brandon Scott has made it official: he has launched a reelection bid to keep his job for another term.
At a news conference about the bid, Scott and his allies focused on his accomplishments from his current term.
In a new term, Scott is hoping to continue what he started.
This comes just days after one councilman endorsed another candidate in the mayoral race, wanting to see a familiar face return to Baltimore City Hall.
Scott made the announcement Saturday afternoon in front of a packed house of elected leaders, community groups and other supporters at Cahill Recreation Center.
During his remarks, Scott reminded the crowd that he has been serving the city for the last 17 years. He started as an intern, became a community liaison, and served on the city council before eventually being elected mayor in 2020.
"I worked in every way I possibly could to fight for this city," Scott said.
One by one, each speaker at the event noted Scott's accomplishments, including the work from his Squeegee Collaborative -- which has helped squeegee workers get access to support services.
Cameron Brown, a former squeegee worker, shared how his life's been turned around because of this.
"I'm working at Johns Hopkins right now, I'm part of Elite Security," Brown said.
Also highlighting and Scott's administration's partnership with Baltimore Police to reduce the city's homicide rate also got the spotlight, as the city is on track to not hit 300 homicides for the first time in eight years.
If he wins another term, Scott assured his supporters he'll build upon what's been done to find solutions to the major issues facing Baltimoreans now, like the proliferation of car thefts.
Car thefts are up more than 200% this year, according to police data.
"You have my word Baltimore, that in my second term, we will continue the generational change we've forged together to fully realize Baltimore's renaissance and do so with the utmost integrity," Scott said.
District 11 councilman Eric Costello announced Thursday that he is endorsing former Mayor Sheila Dixon for the 2024 race.
"City hall has reached a level of dysfunction that I never thought was possible," Costello said at a news conference with Dixon Thursday.
As for why, Costello said Dixon launched a campaign that had the right message and apology for her past. He also noted high-profile exits in Scott's administration, as well as the current car thefts issue.
"There's a complete lack of urgency on issues plaguing our communities," Costello said. "Why wait until we've reached nearly 10,000 car thefts, one of the highest rates in the United States, to act with a sense of urgency?"
Dixon already is making public safety a priority in her campaign, saying the issue has come up the most in town hall meetings she's had.
At one of them, Costello was in attendance.
Bob Wallace is another big name running for mayor. Wallace ran for mayor in 2020 as an independent but is now running as a Democrat.
In total, eight people have officially thrown their hat in to be the city's next mayor.
