By Clarissa Toll |Staff writer|
CSUSB graduate Carey Davis was elected San Bernardino’s new City Mayor on February 4.
Davis led the polls with 56 percent of the vote, a near 12 percent ahead of candidate Wendy McCammack.
The election had less of a turn out than the November election with only 11,092 votes compared to the collected 12,863 votes three months prior, according to the San Bernardino Elections Office of the Registrar of Voters.
Davis is set to take office in March at the end of current mayor Patrick J. Morris’ term.
“Today, San Bernardino has come together. This is a humbling moment for a man who is not used to being a political figure. This is a great day for San Bernardino,” said Davis in an election night speech, according to The Sun.
Throughout the three month campaign, Davis focused on the city’s bankruptcy and his determination to resolve it.
“I will apply the same budget management strategies that I’ve honed in 35 years working in finance. We have serious financial challenges and we need a serious approach to fiscal responsibility,” said Davis on his campaign website, careydavis4mayor.com.
According to The Sun, Davis first became involved with politics about a year ago when he examined city financial statements and determined that the city’s lavish spending and pension benefit increases were to blame for the city’s financial woes.
Davis’ vision consists of plans to bring professionalism to city hall, consensus on city management and bringing businesses back to the downtown and university areas.
The city filed bankruptcy in July 2012 and has a 14.5 percent unemployment rate, according to San Bernardino Residents for Responsible Government.
According to the Manhattan Institute for Policy Research this lack of business and commerce could be to blame for the decrease in the area’s population.
“13.04 percent of their (year) 2000 population left the state in the 2000s. This was greater than the statewide average out-migration of 10.71 percent,” stated the institute in a civic report.
Opposing candidate Wendy McCammack made a statement on her own campaign Facebook page Wednesday.
“We are not finished. We have just begun. Good luck to Mr. Davis. He has a tough job ahead of him and he will need your help. God bless you and God bless San Bernardino,” stated McCammack.
During the day of election, a message of gratitude to all the volunteers in Davis’ camp was written on the Carey Davis for Mayor Facebook page.
Davis received his MBA at CSUSB, serves in a leadership role at his church, and on a local Boy Scouts committee, according to the Mayor-Elect’s website.
In a poll of 20 CSUSB students, zero had participated in the mayoral election.
When asked why he did not vote, student Justin Craig said, “I just didn’t feel like it.”
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