Bibb and Kelley to Go Head to Head in General Election Debate on October 11
Ideastream Public Media and the City Club of Cleveland, the two organizations that teamed up to present two mayoral primary debates this summer, are partnering once again to produce a head-to-head debate between the final two Cleveland mayoral contenders: nonprofit executive Justin Bibb and City Council President Kevin Kelley.
"Cleveland Mayoral Debate: Voters First," will take place on Monday, Oct. 11 at 7:30 p.m. The 90-minute event will air on WVIZ, WCPN, cityclub.org and ideastream.org/debate.
As in the primary debates, many of the questions will come from Clevelanders themselves via pre-recorded videos. Ideastream's Rick Jackson and Nick Castele moderated the first and second primary debates, respectively. Jackson will host the Oct. 11 tête-à-tête, but will be joined by a panel of journalists who will pose follow-up questions: Castele himself, Lawrence Daniel Caswell of Cleveland Documenters and Elizabeth McIntyre of Crain's Cleveland Business.
The general election is Nov. 2. Both Bibb, who won the primary, and Kelley, who came in second, have been aggressively fortifying their bases and attempting to build their coalitions as the date draws near. Both have announced important endorsements in recent days and have continued their busy schedule of evening forums.
Read more: https://www.clevescene.com/scene-and-heard/archives/2021/10/01/bibb-and-kelley-to-go-head-to-head-in-general-election-debate-on-october-11
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Bibb is a chief strategy officer with Urbanova, a technology company focused on cities. His professional background includes corporate, urban consulting.[4] He received endorsements from Our Revolution Ohio and two former mayors: Jane Campbell (D) and Michael White (D).[5][6][7] Describing his campaign, Bibb said, "now is the time for bold, new, dynamic, visionary leadership and not the failed politics and policies of the past."[3]
Kelley assumed office as a member of the Cleveland City Council in 2005 and became president of the council in 2013. His professional background includes work as a social worker and an attorney.[8][9] Kelley received endorsements from incumbent Mayor Frank Jackson (D) and several unions, including the Cleveland Building and Construction Trades Council.[10][11] Kelley emphasized his city council experience, saying, "Every candidate will talk about change. The question is: who knows to and who has a record of making change," adding, "I believe that I have had a record of making change."[12]
This is the first mayoral election without an incumbent on the ballot in Cleveland since 2001. Incumbent Mayor Frank Jackson (D), the longest-serving mayor in Cleveland's history, did not seek re-election. Jackson was first elected in 2005 after defeating incumbent Jane Campbell (D). He was re-elected in 2009, 2013, and 2017.
https://ballotpedia.org/Justin_Bibb