Cincinnati City Council candidates

Winners in order of the most votes are as follows:

Roxanne Qualls

Cecil Thomas

Chris Bortz

Jeff Berding

Leslie Ghiz

Chris Monzel

Charlie Winburn

Laure Quinlivan

Laketa Cole

All 19 candidates are listed below with a brief biography.

Leslie Ghiz is running for re-election in city council. Ghiz was raised in Hunnington, West Virginia. She attended West Virginia University and received a bachelor’s degree in English. She earned her jurist doctorate from Capital University located in Columbus in 1994 and now resides in North Avondale with her husband, Steve and son, George. Ghiz was elected in 2005 and re-elected in 2007. She currently serves as Vice-Chair of the Law and Public Safety and Economic Development committees and as a Member of the Finance Committee. As a member of city council, Ghiz fought to increase police walking patrols and public safety technology in the city budget, restored funding to a drug and gun elimination program and worked with residents in Mt. Washington to preserve a 4-acre wetland for use as a nature preserve by Cincinnati school children. If re-elected, Ghiz is committed to reducing crime, creating and retaining jobs, and improving the quality of life for fellow residents. – Ashlee Stephens | The News Record

Greg Harris is running for re-election in city council. Harris earned a master’s degree and Ph.D. at Miami University and also taught there for six years. Harris resides in West Price Hill with his wife and two children. He serves on the board of the Jewish Community Relations Council and is a member of the West Price Hill Civic Club. Councilman Harris supports strengthening enforcement of Cincinnati’s Chronic Nuisance Ordinance. Councilmember Harris also pursued new strategies to alleviate jail overcrowding, safeguard police morale and support programs that divert youth from the criminal life. – Ashlee Stephens | The News Record

Amy Murray, a Republican of Hyde Park, is running for City Council for Cincinnati. She was previously the President of the Hyde Park Neighborhood Council. Murray advocates supporting small and local business, works to create co-op programs between universities and colleges in the area and local businesses. Murray supports the Early Start program and plans to back programs that give tax credits and scholarships to low-income families. Murray is also a proponent of green space. Murray is also currently working with Cincinnati police to find a way to reduce violence in the city. – Abbey Morris | The News Record

Roxanne Qualls was first elected to Cincinnati City Council in 1991. In ’93, she became the Mayor of Cincinnati until ’99. As mayor, Qualls cleaned up the riverfront and reconstructed Fort Washington Way. She returned to council in 2007. She supports form-based codes, which emphasize the aesthetic side of building locale rather than the use of the building. Form-based codes are community built, so Qualls plan to involve community members in the new zoning. Qualls is also a proponent of remaking Cincinnati’s streets so to emphasize access for people, not cars. She has two committees: The Transportation and Infrastructure subcommittee, which is working on reconstructing I-75 from the Brent Spence Bridge to I-275, and the Vibrant Neighborhoods Committee which takes care of issues such as littering, liquor licenses and the Neighborhood Enhancement Program. – Abbey Morris | The News Record

Laure Quinlivan, former I-Team investigative reporter for Channel 9 News was born in a small town outside Toledo, Ohio before attending Miami University where she studied Mass Communications. She moved to Cincinnati where she currently resides in Mt. Lookout serving on their community council, as well as community council for Columbia-Tusculum. She represents the Democratic Party. Quinlivan states her stance on the issues is, “Cleaner, Greener and Smarter.” She works for clean air, clean water and a litter-free landscape. She voices concerns such as the overflowing of sewers, pollution of the rivers, asthma due to poor air quality and the abundance of litter in the city, pushing for public education to make Cincinnati cleaner. Quinlivan will also support more efforts to make the city environmentally friendly such as urban farms, community gardens and alternative energy resources. Laure Quinlivan asserts she will be a watchdog over the taxpayers’ money, stating the smartest move would be to eliminate wasteful spending and promote Cincinnati by creating jobs and bringing new business to city residents. Quinlivan is a proponent to the possible streetcars and furthering equality in Cincinnati. This would her first term in City Council. – Kate Barrier | The News Record

Cecil Thomas, born in Birmingham, Ala., moved to Cincinnati when he was eight years old. Thomas joined the Cincinnati Police Cadet program, through which he received his college education. Upon graduating, he joined the Cincinnati Police Department. He spent 27 years on the CPD, working in every district and on various special assignments such as undercover narcotics, robbery task force, investigative unit and homicide task force. Thomas retired from the police force in 2000 to become executive directorship of the Cincinnati Human Relations Commission. Under his direction, the CHRC became nationally recognized as a top human relations organization. He stepped down from the CHRC later to run for Cincinnati City Council for which he is now running for re-election. Thomas represents the Democratic Party. His stance on the issues focuses on improving public safety and police-community relations, expanding employment opportunities through educational and economical development, cleaning up the environment through the growth of the green industry and restoring neighborhood business districts. – Kate Barrier | The News Record