The legislative body for the city of Springfield, Massachusetts has put its leadership in place for 2022.
Ward 5 City Councilor Marcus Williams was selected to serve a second consecutive one-year term as president and Councilor-at-Large Jesse Lederman will be vice president.
The votes for the leadership took place during an informal caucus Monday night at the Council’s last regularly scheduled meeting of 2021. Councilors-elect Maria Perez and Zaida Govan, whose terms begin in January, participated in the caucus.
Williams thanked his colleagues for their support during his first year as president of the Council when all meetings took place remotely.
“ (I) first want to thank you for helping me maintain the work of the city during this unprecedented time of the COVID-19 pandemic which I think has affected a lot of us,” Williams said. “Our ability to function is a testament to you showing up with all you have going on in your own personal lives.”
In an interview with WAMC News last month, Williams talked about his priorities for his second year as president, including returning to in-person meetings in the City Council Chambers in City Hall.
“There's a lot of in-house things that I have been focused on to, you know, just better streamline just some of the services that the city council office produces,” Williams said.
“So, you know, working hand in hand with Gladys (Oyola-Lopez) , the City Clerk. to ensure that our admin and the office have, you know, the tools they need to, to best also serve the constituents of, of each and every single counselor. So one of those things, for example, is I'm going to be looking to, you know, increase our social media presence, you know, the Springfield City Council is engaged in a lot of work and, you know, attends a lot of events that, you know, I think the public should be aware about. And so, you know, for example, creating a Instagram and Facebook page is going to be one of the things that I'm going to be looking to do. And we're going to have a robust agenda for sure.”
Unlike last year, when three Councilors competed for the presidency, there was no drama involved in this year’s outcome. The vote for Williams was unanimous after his name was placed in nomination by Lederman.
“President Marcus Williams has been a unifying and empowering leader for our council body,” said Lederman. “Through perseverance, he rose to the occasion to become the right leader at the right time. Notably making good on his promise to put people in front of politics, President Williams has empowered the members of this Council to lead in their own ways at the right time.”
In the contest for vice president, Lederman received nine votes. Councilor-at-Large Trayce Whitfield, the current vice president, got four votes.
The selection of the leadership will be ratified at the Council’s first scheduled meeting of 2022 on January 3rd.
