Latest news with #CouncilMembers
BBC News
23-05-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
Reform UK, power struggle and Doncaster's airport battle
On Friday, 37 Reform councillors will take their seats in the Doncaster Council chamber for the first time. Their new majority comes at a pivotal time for the city, where Labour mayor Ros Jones was re-elected on a ticket of promises to reopen Doncaster Sheffield Airport. Reform came from nowhere to become the council's biggest party, yet they don't control the council because the city's mayoral system means Jones still wields considerable recent election, which saw Labour slump from 40 councillors to 12, leaves a lot of questions. Why did people vote differently for the mayor and their councillors? Will the authority grind to a 'bureaucratic halt'? Will the airport actually open again?Reform's influence will be curtailed by the presence of the Labour mayor, who declined to invite their members to be part of her cabinet. She has instead extended a hand of friendship to the party through an Executive Group she has set will provide "opposition members with access, influence and opportunity to shape decisions".What that actually means in practice remains to be seen, as does whether Reform and other parties take up her invitation. Jones is going to need to bring other parties on board to an extent because although she can make a lot of decisions alone, there are some which need the approval of full authority's budget, the council's Corporate Plan, which sets out priorities, and any decision on the airport, which closed in 2022 when landowners and operators Peel Group said it was no longer viable, are chief among is where things will get interesting. The future of the airport might be the biggest decision Doncaster has to make for a generation. It is due to cost about £100m of public money to reopen the airport. It was the biggest talking point during the was, arguably, the only thing that got Jones across the line again – what had already been done to reopen the airport and her promises to make it clear many people in Doncaster were voting broadly for Reform as their councillors, but for a mayor they picked the person who had already been driving the airport the airport now becomes 'the big thing' for Jones – it got her elected and it will also be the thing that she will be held accountable has already gone so far down the runway, is there any real chance that they can change their minds about the project's value for money and decide not to take off after all?She'll need to convince an unconvinced Reform – but also her Labour colleague and Mayor of South Yorkshire, Oliver will ultimately decide whether the money can be spent because it would be coming from the county's devolution settlement, which his office says the deal "has to make sense" to be granted his not just politicians Jones needs to work on. Doncaster Council's own auditors also have "serious concerns" about the effective use of resources. Professional services firm Grant Thornton told the council in November that not being able to secure outside investment for the airport "would be a significant escalation in the project's risk profile and the council's financial exposure". Some businesses – as much as they want the airport to reopen – want to make sure it is done in the right Mason's office at Redline Assured Security looks out on to the empty terminal at what was once RAF Finningley, a key Cold War-era base before its conversion into a commercial airport 20 years company helped train security staff there and hopes to do it again if it he says legislation on scanners has changed even since the airport closed. They'd need new 3D-scanners and training needs to happen now if locals want the jobs that could be created."We do run the risk, unless it's well managed, of bringing people in from outside of the region and that would be a huge travesty. We'd like to see those jobs returned to the local community," he explains."There is a huge lead time to opening up an airport, particularly one that's been closed for a while. There is a lot of skill that needs to be brought in. We really need to think about training people now rather than having to bring people from outside of the region and taking jobs away from people in Doncaster." 'Lack of open conversation' One person quietly putting his hand up in the corner of this debate is Richard Sulley from the Grantham Centre for Sustainable Futures at the University of told me there are plenty of promises being made by politicians – but not enough questions asked."It's hard to justify reopening an airport in a time of a climate emergency. There do seem to be very few voices politically against the reopening of the airport and you can see why. "What's concerned us has there's not been much open conversation about the downsides of the airport."I think there are strong arguments that this is not a good use of public money even within the context of reopening an airport - let alone when you factor in the carbon emissions that will be generated by that airport." Doncaster Council has established a wholly-owned subsidiary called Fly Doncaster and secured Munich Airport International as its strategic partner to support the re-establishment of operations there over a number of years. The site would be leased from region needs the jobs that the airport could provide but what would the cost be, both financially and environmentally?That's a huge decision to take for Doncaster. And the city will be doing it at a time when the council is, perhaps, at its most mayoral system that Doncaster uses is meant to be getting scrapped by the government in the next few years. By then though, these decisions will be made. Listen to highlights from South Yorkshire on BBC Sounds, catch up with the latest episode of Look North
Yahoo
14-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Hialeah's city council, deadlocked over vacant seat, reopens qualification period
The Hialeah City Council is in deadlock. What was supposed to be a routine appointment turned into political gridlock as the council failed to agree on who should fill a vacant council seat, leaving the city without a clear path forward. At her first meeting as interim mayor, Jacqueline Garcia-Roves presided over a contentious, hour-and-a-half-long debate that ended in a stalemate. The council remains split 3-3 over who should replace her on the dais during her temporary mayoral tenure. On one side: Council Members Luis Rodriguez, Carl Zogby and Juan Junco, who backed only one candidate — William Marrero, 21, a former aide to Rodriguez. Marrero is pursuing a public administration degree at FIU after earning an associate's degree in Public Policy and Services. On the other side: Melinda De La Vega, Jesus Tundidor and Monica Perez, who supported any of the other five applicants — just not Marrero. De La Vega and Perez argued that Marrero lacks the life experience needed to serve as interim council member, particularly for a role that faces public scrutiny and pressure. However, Perez added that she would support him if he chooses to run in an election. Every vote ended in a 3-3 tie. No progress. No appointment. Even when a motion was made to table the matter, the council instead revisited nominations for the other six candidates: ▪ Gelien Perez, 35, is a former Hialeah Human Resources Director who was investigated for allegedly using her city position to benefit her personal real estate business between 2018 and 2020. She resigned in January 2022. Her real estate license remains active through September 2026. Originally from Cuba, Perez holds a master's degree in legal studies and another in human resources management. ▪ Luis Antonio Morales, 34, is a mortgage broker and president of Major League Mortgage. He holds an Associate of Arts degree in marketing from Miami Dade College. ▪ Juan Santana, 42, is a community activist and a three-time mayoral candidate who has also filed for interim council seats multiple times. He advocates for government transparency, more affordable housing for workers, and lower trash collection and water bills. Santana has a high school diploma and is vice president of Positive Hits Community Service Group South, a nonprofit serving low-income residents in Hialeah. ▪ Kassandra Montandon, 30, leads several education initiatives, including a financial literacy program for low- to moderate-income students in Miami-Dade Public Schools and at Miami Dade College, including its Hialeah campus. She holds an Associate of Arts degree in Psychology from Miami Dade College and a Bachelor's degree in Psychology from Florida International University. ▪ Javier Morejon, 34, works as a city surveyor for Miami Gardens. He is a member of the Miami-Dade County Historic Preservation Board and previously served on Hialeah's Beautification Committee Board. ▪ Abdel Jimenez, 45, is an attorney who earned his law degree from the University of Miami and holds a Bachelor of Arts in English Literature. He owns and operates his own law firm and is a former police officer with the Miami Springs Police Department. Jimenez currently serves on the city's Planning and Zoning Board. Under the city charter, the council has just 30 days to fill Garcia-Roves' vacancy, either by appointment or by calling a special election. Garcia-Roves was sworn in as interim mayor on April 28, following the resignation of Mayor Esteban 'Steve' Bovo the day before. That clock is now ticking. Garcia-Roves did not speak during the vote. While walking out of the chamber, she told the Miami Herald that 'they'—referring to those opposed to Marrero's appointment—had turned the vote into a 'political thing.' When asked whether she supported Marrero, Garcia-Roves said she had nothing against any candidate. Although she hasn't decided whether to run for the mayor's seat after her interim period runs out, she added, 'If they keep putting on a show, they might help me make up my mind.' Former Mayor Raul Martinez told the Herald that a deadlock forcing the council to reopen the qualification process is unprecedented in the city's history. Candidate qualifications have been reopened until May 23. At the next council meeting on May 27, the council must break the deadlock or face the cost of a special election. The last special election in 2022 cost $44,000, according to the office of the Miami-Dade Supervisor of Elections. The final amount could vary depending on the timing and whether the city shares the ballot with a Miami-Dade County, state or national election. In 2023, a general election that included several municipalities within the county, including Hialeah, cost the city more than $415,000.
Washington Post
07-05-2025
- Politics
- Washington Post
Trump appoints former ‘Real Housewives' star to Holocaust Museum board
President Donald Trump named five new members to the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Council on Monday night, including a former 'Real Housewives of New Jersey' television star whose stepson was charged in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. The appointments, and eight others Trump made last week, will replace members he fired April 29, all of whom had been named by President Joe Biden.
