Gigi Traore is expected to become the first Black mayor of a small, majority-white Ohio town despite efforts by other officials that could have stopped her from taking on the title.
As Newburgh Heights Council president pro tempore, Traore automatically assumes the role of mayor if the seat becomes vacant unexpectedly.
Current Mayor Trevor Elkins, facing legal troubles, has agreed to step down. However, the council scheduled a special meeting to review Traore’s position on the days when they knew she would be out of town.
She believes it was an attempt to avert the historic moment.
Traore was three and a half hours away in Bellefontaine, Ohio, visiting her son for his birthday. She drove “like a crazy a woman,” rushing back to Newburgh Heights to get there on time for the meeting. In the meantime, Traore, a political organizer by trade, rallied support from the community.
Other local and state officials and residents took to the April 11 meeting to lobby for Traore. She believes the outrage derailed the plan.
“I felt like I was going to be walking into an all-white [jury] trial having made a decision on me, where they were actually going to make that decision in my absence,” Traore said. “So it was important that I got back here to be able to speak for myself, but also that I didn’t come alone.”
The Village of Newburgh Heights is 73 percent white, and 22 percent Black, according to census data. It is a progressive town that has passed hair discrimination legislation and removed the word “alien” from references to immigrants.
The Newburgh Heights Council scheduled the meeting with a closed-door executive session to discuss “personnel issues,” according to the meeting agenda obtained by Atlanta Black Star. The council also planned a pro tempore election, the agenda shows, and to discuss a council vacancy and the mayoral transition.
The other councilmembers had an issue with a legal dispute Traore had with her landlord. After the closed session, they decided not to take any further action.
A group of mostly Black women attended the meeting to show their support for Traore. Former Ohio senator and congressional candidate Nina Turner reportedly left an endorsement meeting to show up for the town’s soon-to-be first Black mayor.
Traore told the council she sued her landlord because she had a hole in the ceiling for six months after a tree fell on the roof, and the landlord refused to fix it. She has since settled the lawsuit, she said.
“Yes, we went to court and I won,” Traore said. “So, not to give me the space and the grace to show you as I had already said that the matter was being handled by my attorneys and we have an agreement because they know they were wrong.”
The councilmembers said they wanted to make sure that Traore would not be moving out of the community. Traore also said that there was speculation that she proposed an ordinance in 2021 that would help her with the case.
The “Tenant’s Right to Pay to Stay” requires landlords to accept back rent and fees from tenants to retain tenancy after an eviction. It was passed by the council in October in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the town’s official website.
“The claim that I misused the legislation because I had the foresight to know that in December I was going to go battle with a landlord is false,” Traore said during the meeting.
Councilmember Bill Dunman said he just had questions about the lawsuit, and Traore answered them to his satisfaction, so there was no reason to move forward with the vote.
“The council has discussed the issues before us and clarified misinformation and rumors brought forth,” Dunman said. “We would like to say that this opportunity has given us the resolve to communicate more effectively and thoroughly as we navigate the future. This council supports Gigi Traore and her position of council president pro tempore.”
Traore said she was alerted about the meeting the day before it. As the council president, she fills the mayor’s seat if he is absent, so she must advise the mayor whenever she will be away. She told Elkins her plans to travel for her son’s birthday ahead of time.
The mayor has denied any involvement in calling the meeting.
“I do not get involved in who the council pro tempore is. I never have. As mayor, I’ve never been involved with,” Elkins said during the meeting. “There are reasons I believe this meeting has been called. I have had conversations with the councilmembers about this meeting as to form and legal process.”
Traore, a daughter of a Nigerian immigrant, made history as the first Black person on the council in 2018. She made history again when she was elected pro tempore in 2021. She is the first Black person in Newburgh Heights’ 114-year history to be appointed in the position.
“I am reminded of what am I because I get asked: ‘Oh, where are you from? Are you really from Cleveland? Are you from America? And I want to say I am America. I am the part you won’t recognize, but get used to me,'” Traore said during the meeting.
The council reelected Traore for a second term as pro tempore in January. She said it was “hurtful” to know that other councilmembers would try to remove her, but she was surprised and touched by the amount of support she received.
“I’m very, very thankful to the sisterhood that showed up and ensured that I was not standing alone,” she said.
Traore said she is now preparing to assume the new role as mayor. Elkins was recently found guilty of illegally using campaign funds. He has refused to say when he will officially step down. Elkins had a pretrial hearing scheduled on April 14, but it was postponed until further notice, Traore said.
