City Council President: Cohen Most Coherent Progressive Vision
Overview: 3 present and former city council members are running for City Council President.
Some miscellenous nice things about each of them:
-Mosby pushed Ban the Box legislation to protect the formerly incarcerated from discrimination[1]
-Sneed championed safe and affordable water access while in office
-Cohen has a reputation for leading progressive legislation in City Council
Housing: All 3 have experience championing housing access and emphasizing inclusionary housing; one of the biggest differences in this election is between Cohen and Mosby on the 1$ houses program, which Mosby sees as a common sense way to alleviate vacancy and increase home ownership and Cohen and others see as misleading and unaffordable[2] intermingled with rental insurance scams [3]
Education:
-Cohen vows to lead the City Council in funding universal pre-K in Baltimore for 3 and 4 year olds
-Mosby introduced a resolution calling on the Governor to fully fund Baltimore City public schools
-Sneed has a balanced budget emphasis for some reason, stating “the number one cost to the city budget is our labor cost”[4]
Crime:
-Mosby and Cohen emphasize tackling root causes in questionnaire responses, but Mosby is much more vague on the details and it comes across as just peddling in buzzwords
-Sneed pushed for police accountability in this and prior campaigns
-Cohen leans heavily on Ivan Bates endorsement, which I find neutral at best but may be a plus or minus depending on your point of view
Labor:
-In previous role as Councilwoman, Sneed supported bill to raise the minimum wage (bill was killed when then-Mayor Pugh changed her mind)
-Mosby comes across as anti-labor rights as he accuses Sneed and Cohen of constructing legislation in a way Unions find agreeable (heaven forbid)[5]
-Cohen endorsed by the biggest set of unions as well as several civil rights and peace organizations are side effects of his championing the rights of workers, immigrants, and humanistic values[6]
Council Politics:
-Mosby and Sneed against smaller City Council; Cohen sees pros and cons and calls for more staff resources if districts expand
-upon winning his election to council president 4 years ago, Mosby punished those he deemed disloyal by promoting conservative council-members over them in a disturbing shakeup [7]
Environment:
-Sneed emphasizes zero waste plan and getting recycling back on track
-Cohen promises to “…hold DPW accountable and establish a curbside composting pilot during my first term in office — waste diversion is better for our climate and air. As a teacher in Curtis Bay, I saw firsthand the impact of the trash incinerator on our children’s health and learning. I will continue to advocate vocally against BGE’s unnecessary gas infrastructure expansion, which also raises utility rates. And I will continue to champion active transportation and transit, including the Red Line.”[8];
Campaign Donors:
-Cohen raised most and is in the lead, but all 3 are still kind of close[9]
-Mosby’s campaign financial records have major gaps and disparities pointing to failure to accurately disclose their campaign income and activities[10]
Conclusion
solid stances on walkable cities and forward thinking urban infrastructure alongside tangible actions in office earn him an endorsement by bikemore as well as Sierra Club and other environmental groups[11] and seal the deal for me — Cohen offers the most proactive vision for Baltimore to meet the needs of a larger share of residents and coherent methods to do so
I recommend voting for Zeke Cohen for City Council President
== Sources Cited ==
[1] https://thedailyrecord.com/2020/01/30/maryland-legislators-buck-ban-the-box-veto/
[2] https://therealnews.com/a-nostalgic-fantasy-baltimores-1-homes-explained
[4] https://www.vote411.org/ballot
this debate can be viewed here: https://www.wbal.com/debate-2024-baltimore-city-council-president/
[6] https://jufjcampaignfund.org/about-us/endorsements/
