Andrew Ginther

Andrew Ginther
53rd Mayor of Columbus, Ohio
Assumed office
January 1, 2016
Preceded by Michael B. Coleman
President of Columbus City Council
In office
January 3, 2011[1] – December 31, 2015
Preceded by Michael C. Mentel
Succeeded by Zach Klein
Personal details
Born (1975-04-27) April 27, 1975
Columbus, Ohio, U.S.
Political party Democratic
Spouse(s) Shannon Ginther[2]
Children 1[3]
Education Whetstone High School
Alma mater Earlham College (BA)
Website www.andrewginther.com

Andrew J. Ginther (born April 27, 1975)[2] is a Democratic politician, the 53rd mayor of Columbus, Ohio, and the 48th person to serve in that office.[4] He served as President of Columbus City Council from 2011 until 2015.

Early life and education

Ginther was born at Riverside Hospital in Columbus, the third of four children. Ginther's mother was a social worker and his father was an attorney specializing in adoption and foster law. His family lived in the Clintonville neighborhood of Columbus.

After graduation from Whetstone High School, Ginther attended Earlham College in Richmond, Indiana, where he earned a BA in Political Science in 1997. As part of Earlham's foreign study program, Ginther traveled to Northern Ireland to study peace and conflict resolution at the University of Ulster and Queen's College. He also taught at public schools in Belfast and Derry. Ginther served internships at the Carter Center in Atlanta, where he taught nonviolence and dispute resolution to children.[2]

Career

Ginther at swearing-in
Mayor Ginther speaks at his community swearing-in event at Columbus' historic Lincoln Theatre on January 13, 2016.

Ginther served as a legislative aide to Ohio state Senator Dan Brady. He then served as coordinator of violence prevention programs for the local nonprofit organization Strategies Against Violence Everywhere (SAVE).

2001–2007: Columbus Board of Education

In 1999, Ginther ran unsuccessfully for a seat on the Columbus Board of Education. In 2001 his second campaign was successful, and he served as a member of the school board for six years, being reelected in 2005. Ginther also worked for 10 years as community outreach coordinator for Triumph Communications, a central Ohio company providing public relations and political campaign management services.[3]

2007–2015: Columbus City Council

In February 2007, Ginther was appointed to the Columbus City Council to fill an unexpired term after the resignation of Matt Habash. He was elected to a new term as a member of City Council in November 2007, was reelected as a member in 2009, and on January 3, 2011 was selected to replace Michael C. Mentel as Council president, becoming the youngest City Council president in the history of Columbus at age 35. In 2011 Ginther accepted a new position as vice president of Community Affairs and Outreach for nonprofit Children’s Hunger Alliance.[5] He remained City Council president through the end of 2015.

2016–present: Mayor of Columbus

In March 2015, Ginther and fellow Democrat Zach Scott, the former Franklin County, Ohio Sheriff, were selected in a primary election by Columbus voters to compete in the November 2015 general election to replace retiring Columbus Mayor Michael B. Coleman (D).[6] In the general election on November 3, 2015, Ginther defeated Scott with 59% of the vote.[4]

Administration and cabinet

The Ginther Cabinet
OFFICE NAME TERM
Mayor Andrew Ginther 2016–Present
Chief of Staff Greg Davies 2016–Present
Director of Development Steve Schoeny 2016–Present
Director of Public Utilities Tracie Davies 2016–Present
Director of Public Service Jennifer L. Gallagher, P.E. 2016–Present
Director of Public Safety Ned Pettus 2016–Present
Director of Public Health Teresa Long 2016–2017
Mysheika Roberts 2017–Present
Director of Finance & Management Joe Lombardi 2016–Present
Director of Human Resources Nichole Brandon 2016–Present
Director of Technology Sam Orth III 2016–Present
Director of Education Rhonda Johnson 2016–Present
Director of Recreation & Parks Tony Collins 2015–Present
Director of Building & Zoning Services Scott Messer 2016–Present
Director of Civil Service Amy DeLong 2016–Present
Source:[7][8][9][10]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Andrew J. Ginther". ballotpedia.org. Retrieved November 30, 2015.
  2. 1 2 3 Parks, Kevin (January 18, 2011). "Ginther Cites Teacher as Inspiration". ThisWeek Community News. Retrieved November 5, 2015.
  3. 1 2 Lucas Sullivan. "Candidate profile: Ginther grew up in atmosphere of service". The Columbus Dispatch. Retrieved November 30, 2015.
  4. 1 2 Sullivan, Lucas; Rouan, Rick (November 3, 2015). "Ginther Defeats Scott, Will Succeed Coleman as Columbus Mayor". The Columbus Dispatch. Retrieved November 4, 2015.
  5. ↑ "City Council Election 2011: Interview with Andrew Ginther". ColumbusUnderground.com. Retrieved November 30, 2015.
  6. ↑ Sullivan, Lucas (May 7, 2015). "Zach Scott Pins Mayoral Hopes on Bigger General-election Turnout". The Columbus Dispatch. Retrieved November 4, 2015.
  7. ↑ Kurtzman, Lori; Zachariah, Holly (November 26, 2015). "Government Insider: Ginther Begins Assembling His Cabinet". The Columbus Dispatch. Retrieved December 30, 2015.
  8. ↑ Sullivan, Lucas (December 29, 2015). "Ginther to Tour Columbus Neighborhoods as Mayor". The Columbus Dispatch. Retrieved December 30, 2015.
  9. ↑ "Mayor Ginther Appoints Sam Orth III as Director of Technology". www.columbus.gov. Retrieved July 6, 2016.
  10. ↑ "Retired Fire Chief Ned Pettus named Columbus safety director". Columbus Dispatch. July 14, 2016. Retrieved July 14, 2016.
Political offices
Preceded by
Michael B. Coleman		 Mayor of Columbus, Ohio
2016–present		 Incumbent
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