Candidates for mayor in Charleston talk priorities ahead of Election Day

CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Many similarities can be found on the priority lists for all three candidates for mayor of Charleston in the November General Election: Republican J.B. Akers, Democrat Amy Goodwin and Independent Andy Backus.

“I would love to see us better our economy. I would love to see us reverse our population decline and actually have more people living within Charleston city limits and I would like to see us make Charleston a safer and cleaner and deal with the vagrancy issues,” Akers said.

Of those issues, Akers told 580-WCHS, a MetroNews affiliate, his No. 1 priority is public safety.

J.B. Akers

Improved public safety is at the heart of Goodwin’s priority list as well, a list which also includes economic development and creation of a sense of community.

Addressing those issues, she argued, is necessary to address what she sees as the Capital City’s most significant issue.

“We have to grow our population. It’s our biggest challenge here in Charleston,” Goodwin said.

“We need to start being aggressive in implementing strategies that not only keep our young people here, but bring people back. When people say, ‘The brain drain is real here in Charleston,’ they’re not kidding.”

Amy Goodwin

For Backus, jumpstarting Charleston’s economy is the leading issue.

“We need to re-engage the small businesses that we have here now. We need to start looking at what we’re doing right and do more of that and look at some things that maybe we can improve upon — do what we need to do to help our businesses that are already here to grow,” Backus said.

“Past that, we’re going want to go start knocking on doors. We need to starting bringing in new business and we need to be flexible.”

A newcomer to politics, Backus is a Charleston native who works as adult education instructor for the Mountain State Educational Services Cooperative out of Garnet Career Center in Charleston. He and his wife, Jessica Backus, have six children.

Andy Backus

Goodwin is a former deputy secretary of commerce and West Virginia tourism commissioner. A past spokesperson for both Gov. Bob Wise and Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin, she has never run for public office before now.

She and her husband, Booth Goodwin, a former U.S. attorney and prior Democratic gubernatorial candidate, have two sons.

Akers is an attorney with and owner of Akers Law Offices and current Charleston city clerk. He and his wife, Maryclaire Akers, a senior assistant prosecuting attorney in Kanawha County, have three children.

Like Backus and Goodwin, Akers also has never run for public office before now.

The winner in November will replace Charleston Mayor Danny Jones who is in his 4th term and opted not to seek re-election.

As of last week, Goodwin estimated she along with volunteers with her campaign had knocked on more than 9,000 doors in Charleston during the primary and general election seasons combined.

Backus said he and his supporters had been meeting people “in their living rooms” to talk about Charleston’s future.

Akers, who ran unopposed in the Republican primary, put his campaign’s door-knocking total at more than 5,000 since June.

Public safety issues were the issues he’d been asked about the most on the campaign trail, he said.

“A mayor has to wear a lot of hats, but the primary job for the mayor is public safety,” Akers said.

“I know a mayor needs to be involved in tourism issues and a mayor needs to be involved in economic issues, but I think the voters are smart enough to realize those other things start with public safety.”

In terms of public safety, building on community policing, Charleston neighborhood watch groups and drug market interventions are needed in Goodwin’s view.

“One mayor, one program, one committee will not solve it all,” Goodwin said, citing what she sees as the current “silos” for health professionals, police and others in the community when it comes to the opioid epidemic.

“There is no one currently working together as a robust unit to attack this problem. It will be my #1 priority to bring everyone together.”

Backus sees himself as a candidate for Charleston residents who’ve largely opted out of involvement up to now.

“We have to motivate people to take responsibility, not just for themselves, but for their city and how we’re going to move forward,” he said.  “It’s not too late for Charleston to be the city we could have been.”

580-WCHS, a MetroNews affiliate, will have more with the candidates for mayor in Charleston on a number of issues each Monday leading up to Election Day on Tuesday, Nov. 6.

Early voting begins on Oct. 24.