Richmond City Council President Michelle Mosby is kicking off her 2016 mayoral campaign early next month with a three-day symposium she says will include five black female mayors from around the country.
“I’m hoping I’ll get to know these ladies and they’ll get to know me and they’ll be able to give me information that will help me move forward to do what is necessary to do to run this city,” Mosby said.
Mosby, who confirmed her candidacy in August, announced the event with an elaborate invitation that consisted of a small folder with 14 separate pieces of card stock describing the goal of the symposium, the order of events, the attendees, and Mosby’s background.
The invitation lists multiple meals, tours and other gatherings, including a Jan. 12 dinner and panel discussion titled “African American Female Governance — Leadership Transformation: Breakthroughs, successes and powerful impacts; Avenues for effective governance of a mid-sized, diverse city.”
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Mosby, who is the first black woman to serve as City Council president, said the event is open to anyone who wants to attend.
Mosby has not yet formally filed paperwork to establish her candidacy with the State Board of Elections — a step required not just to get on the ballot but to disclose campaign expenditures. And missing from the invitation is the common “paid for by” tag candidates typically placed on campaign materials.
She acknowledged the event appeared expensive, but brushed off procedural questions about whether organizing it without establishing her candidacy might present a violation of state law. “Whatever reporting will be necessary, I’ll make sure it’s reported,” she said.
According to the Board of Elections, a person who “solicited or received funds or other things of value ... for the purpose of expressly advocating such individual’s nomination or election to any office” is required to file a statement of organization, which triggers campaign finance reporting requirements.
Mosby said Richmond businessman Harold L. Watkins II is organizing and financing the event on her behalf and referred further questions to him. He is currently out of the country, according to Mosby.
Watkins operates Harry Co. LLC, which according to its website provides services to people with mental health and behavioral issues and organizes corporate events.
Listed as “symposium honorees” on the invitation are two current and three former mayors. Among them is Tyrus Byrd, the mayor of Parma, Mo., a tiny town that was in the news this year after Byrd’s election, which prompted six of eight police officers — all white — to walk off the job, leading to accusations of racism on the part of the town’s employees. New Haven, Conn., Mayor Toni Harp, is also listed as a guest.
The former mayors are Shirley Gibson, the former mayor of Miami Gardens, Fla; Sharon Pratt, the former mayor of Washington; and state Sen. Mamie E. Locke, D-Hampton, a former mayor of Hampton.
Of the listed honorees, The Richmond Times-Dispatch was able to reach only a representative of Pratt on Monday. A staff member in her consulting firm said the former mayor is aware of the event but has not “100 percent” committed to attending.
Mosby’s early campaign effort puts her well ahead of other possible contenders for the office, who include two other sitting council members — Jon Baliles and Chris Hilbert — as well as Levar Stoney, the secretary of the commonwealth, and former Del. Joseph D. Morrissey. Jack Berry, the executive director of Venture Richmond, is also frequently mentioned as a possible candidate, as is School Board member Jeff M. Bourne.
None has announced plans to run.