Adrian Fenty

Infobox_Governor
name= Adrian M. Fenty


caption=
order=6th
office= Mayor of Washington, D.C.
term_start= January 2, 2007
term_end=
predecessor= Anthony A. Williams
successor=Incumbent
birth_date= birth date and age |1970|12|7
birth_place= Washington, D.C.
death_date=
death_place=
spouse= Michelle Cross Fenty
children= Matthew Fenty (born 2000)
Andrew Fenty (born 2000)
profession= Attorney
party= Democrat
religion=Non-denominational Protestant
alma_mater= Oberlin College, Howard University
website = [http://dc.gov/mayor/index.shtm dc.gov/mayor/index.shtm]

Adrian Malik Fenty (born December 6, 1970) [cite web |title=Voters Guide 2006 Supplement |work=The Washington Informer |date=2006-09-24 |url=http://www.washingtoninformer.com/Voters%20Guide%20REVISED%2006.pdf |format=PDF ] is the sixth and current mayor of the District of Columbia, having begun his term of office on January 2, 2007.

Fenty is the youngest person ever to hold the office [Libby, Lewis. " [http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=6479556 The Nation's Capital Gets a New Mayor] ". National Public Radio. November 13 2006. Retrieved on May 4 2007.] of District of Columbia Mayor, winning election at age 35 and entering office at 36. He is the second youngest mayor of a major American city, after Pittsburgh's Luke Ravenstahl.

Early life, education, and family

Fenty was raised in a rowhouse in the Washington, D.C. neighborhood of Mount Pleasant. He and his wife Michelle have twin sons, Matthew and Andrew. The couple's third child is due late this fall. [ [http://www.wusa9.com/news/local/story.aspx?storyid=73155&catid=187 WUSA9.com | Washington, DC | Mayor Fenty Expecting 3rd Child ] ] He was educated at Oberlin College, earning a B.A. in English and Economics, and earned a J.D. from the Howard University School of Law. [" [http://www.fenty06.com/m/about_adrian.htm About Adrian] ". Fenty 2006 campaign website. Retrieved on May 4 2007.] Fenty is a member of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity. [David Nakamura and V. Dion Haynes. " [http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/10/18/AR2006101800581.html Kwame Jackson Promotes Fenty] ". "The Washington Post". October 19 2006. page DZ02. Retrieved on May 4 2007.] Fenty's parents own Fleet Feet, an athletic shoe store in the D.C. neighborhood of Adams Morgan. [ " [http://www.fleetfeetdc.com/ Fleet Feet D.C.] ". About Us. Staff. Retrieved on May 4 2007.] Fenty's father is African American and his mother is white. [Fisher, Marc. " [http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/08/23/AR2006082301969.html Fenty Emerges as an Action Hero] ". "The Washington Post". August 23 2006. page B01. Retrieved on May 4 2007.]

Political career

Fenty was an intern for Senator Howard Metzenbaum (D-OH), Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC), and Representative Joseph P. Kennedy II (D-MA) before becoming involved in local politics. In addition to serving as an aide to Councilmember Kevin P. Chavous, he was elected as an Advisory Neighborhood Commissioner in ANC 4C and was president of the 16th Street Neighborhood Civic Association.

In 2000, Fenty ran against longtime Ward 4 Councilmember Charlene Drew Jarvis. Jarvis was well-known and a heavy favorite, but Fenty campaigned relentlessly and — in what was to become his trademark — pursued an aggressive door-to-door strategy that put up countless green yard signs. It worked; Fenty was elected by a 57–43 percent margin. [cite news |url=http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-545904.html |title= Council Member Jarvis Ousted in D.C. Primary; Fenty Defeats Veteran Lawmaker |accessdate=2007-05-19 |last=Chan |first=Sewell |date=2000-09-13 |publisher=The Washington Post ] Unopposed in both the primary and general elections in 2004, Fenty was reelected for a second term.

As a Councilmember, Fenty was noted for his commitment to constituent services; his vocal opposition to public funding for a new baseball stadium; and his proposal to fund a $1 billion capital improvement program for public schools, which, in different form, the Council subsequently passed. [cite web |url=http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/08/20/AR2006082000595_pf.html |title= Cropp and Fenty Have Pursued Their Legislative Agendas By Opposite Means |accessdate=2007-05-19 |last=Nakamura |first=David |date=2006-08-21 |publisher=The Washington Post |pages=page A01 ] He is a member of the Mayors Against Illegal Guns Coalition, [cite web| url=http://www.mayorsagainstillegalguns.org/html/about/members.shtml| title=Mayors Against Illegal Guns: Coalition Members] an organization formed in 2006 and co-chaired by New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg and Boston mayor Thomas Menino.

One of the commonly noted symbols of his attention to constituent concerns is his frequent use of his three BlackBerry devices. One BlackBerry directly connects him to Police Chief Cathy Lanier while the latter two are for business and personal matters. [cite web |url=http://dcist.com/2007/08/27/fenty_ponders_b.php |title= Fenty Ponders Blackberry Spokesman Role |accessdate=2007-08-29 |last=Austermuhle|first=Martine|date=2007-08-27 |publisher=DCist.com ] These, along with the black fedora he often wears, are his trademark accoutrements.

2006 mayoral campaign

Adrian Fenty formally announced his campaign for DC Mayor on June 1, 2005. In the fall of 2005, then-mayor Anthony A. Williams made the widely anticipated announcement that he would not seek re-election, and then-Council Chair Linda Cropp announced she would be a candidate for Mayor. Other candidates in the field included businesswoman Marie Johns, then-Councilmember Vincent Orange, and lobbyist Michael Brown (who dropped out of the race in September 2006), though most political observers saw the race as a two-person contest between Fenty and Cropp.

Fenty ran on a platform of bringing a more energetic and hands-on approach to city government. Cropp trumpeted her 25 years of experience in city government and her desire to continue the progress made by Anthony Williams, who endorsed her candidacy. The race was widely viewed as neck-and-neck through the spring of 2006. Both candidates raised significant and nearly equal amounts of money – roughly $1.75 million through June 10, 2006 [cite web |url=http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/06/12/AR2006061201660.html |title=Vocal Critic Of Mayor Leads in Fundraising |accessdate=2007-05-19 |last=Montgomery |first=Lori |coauthors= Nikita Stewart |date=2006-06-13 |publisher=The Washington Post |pages=page B04 ] – and neither gained any significant advantages from the numerous candidate debates and forums.

By July 2006, however, public and private polling gave Fenty a roughly 10-point advantage. [cite web |url=http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/07/22/AR2006072200632.html |title=Fenty Emerges From D.C. Pack |accessdate=2007-05-19 |last=Barnes |first=Robert |coauthors=Lori Montgomery |date=2006-07-23 |publisher=The Washington Post |pages=page A01 ] Political observers have debated whether it was Fenty's unprecedented door-to-door campaign (he and his campaign visited virtually every block in the city), Cropp's lack of engagement in the campaign, or the electorate's desire for a new direction after eight years of Anthony Williams. Regardless, Cropp went on the attack during the last month of the campaign. In direct mail and television advertisements, Cropp painted Fenty as unfit for the job and a careless lawyer who had been admonished by the D.C. Bar; [cite web |url=http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/08/21/AR2006082101598.html |title=New Cropp Fliers Attack Fenty |accessdate=2007-05-19 |last=Silverman |first=Elissa |coauthors=Lori Montgomery |date=2006-08-22 |publisher=The Washington Post |pages=page B02 ] in 2005, he received an informal admonition from the Bar for his role in a probate case in 1999. The attacks appear to have backfired. The reaction, coupled with the endorsement of the "Washington Post", extended Fenty's lead in the campaign's final weeks. On September 12, 2006, Fenty won all 142 city precincts in the Democratic Primary—a feat unparalleled in the city's political history [cite news |url=http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/09/13/AR2006091300695.html |title=In Sweep, Fenty Draws On Uniting To Conquer |accessdate=2007-05-19 |last=Montgomery |first=Lori |date=2006-09-14 |publisher=The Washington Post |pages=page A01 ] —and defeated Linda Cropp by a 57–31 percent margin.

Fenty received 89% of the vote in the general election [cite news |url=http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/metro/elections/2006/results/general_dc.html |title=Washington, D.C. Full Ballot, Local Elections 2006 |work=The Washington Post |accessdate=2007-05-19 ] and became the capital's sixth elected mayor since the establishment of home rule.

Mayor (2007–present)

Upon his inauguration as Mayor of Washington, Fenty surprised the city by announcing his plans to overhaul the city's ailing school system by bringing its administration directly under mayoral control — a policy that he had not mentioned during his mayoral campaign. However, the D.C. Council granted Fenty's request and he received new powers over the school system in June 2007. [cite news
url=
title=Fenty takes control of public schools
accessdate=2007-06-18
last=Emerling
first=Gary
date=2007-06-13
publisher=The Washington Times] His selection of education reformer Michelle Rhee to manage District schools surprised the education establishment, and underscored his determination to set D.C.'s long-troubled system on a new path. The 37-year-old Rhee rose to prominence as an advocate for higher standards and less-conventional recruitment and training of teachers.Fact|date=August 2007.

In-school education is not the only priority with Fenty, an advocate of Marion Barry's famous DC Summer Youth Job Program, which helps teens with part-time summer employment, often in agencies of the District Government. These jobs, according to Fenty, will inspire children in secondary education to seek higher goals, and to continue further their education, be it trade schools and/or major universities.

In March 2007, Fenty suffered a significant defeat by pro-gun groups in the D.C. case for gun control. [cite web
url=http://www.cnsnews.com/ViewNation.asp?Page=/Nation/archive/200703/NAT20070312c.html
title=Decision to Overturn DC Gun Ban Under Fire
accessdate=2007-06-18
last=Hall
first=Randy
date=2007-03-12
publisher=Cybercast News Service] The case was reviewed by the U.S. Supreme Court in June 2008, and the D.C. gun ban was struck down as a violation of the Second Amendment.

In July 2007, Fenty endorsed Senator Barack Obama of Illinois for President in the 2008 election. [cite news |url=http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/07/17/AR2007071701227.html |title=D.C. Mayor Endorses Obama's Campaign |accessdate=2007-11-24 |last=Nakamura |first=David |date=2007-07-18 |work=The Washington Post ]

Election history

2000 Council of the District of Columbia, Ward 4, Democratic Primary Electioncite web |title=Final and Complete Election Results |work=District of Columbia Board of Elections and Ethics |date=2000-09-22 |url=http://www.dcboee.org/information/elec_2000/primary_elec.shtm ]

2004 Council of the District of Columbia, Ward 4, General Electioncite web |title=Certified Summary Results |work=District of Columbia Board of Elections and Ethics |date=2004-11-18 |format=PDF |url=http://www.dcboee.org/pdf_files/Summary_2.pdf ]

References

External links

* [http://dc.gov/mayor/index.shtm?portal_link=hi Washington, D.C. Mayor Adrian M. Fenty]
* [http://www.fenty06.com Fenty for Mayor official Web site]
* [http://www.washingtoncitypaper.com/cover/2006/cover0811.html?navCenterTopImg Brotherly Love: Washington City Paper Cover Story]
* [http://www.citymayors.com/mayors/washington_mayor.html CityMayors profile]
* [http://www.wamu.org/audio/kn/06/07/k1060714-11063.asx Adrian Fenty radio interview on WAMU's Kojo Nnamdi Show]
* [http://www.wtop.com/emedia/26085.mp3 Adrian Fenty radio interview on WTOP's Post Politics Program]
* [http://www.mayorsagainstillegalguns.org Mayor Against Illegal Guns homepage]
* [http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/08/30/AR2006083003248.html Washington Post profile of Fenty]
* [http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/09/04/AR2006090400948.html Washington Post endorsement of Fenty]