'Change is coming': Shammas Malik wins Akron mayor's race in Democratic primary

With as close to a mandate as a candidate could get in a seven-person race, Shammas Malik is the presumptive mayor of Akron following the results of the Democratic primary Tuesday.

Malik, 32, who is of Pakistani and Irish decent, is poised to become the first person of color to lead the 200-year-old city of 190,000 residents.

The Harvard-educated attorney and first-term city councilman got off to an early lead and never trailed throughout election night on his way to collecting 43.2% of the vote. The next closest challenger, Akron Deputy Mayor for Intergovernmental Affairs Marco Sommerville, received 25.7% of the votes.

In third place, Ward 5 Councilwoman Tara Mosley received 17.5% of votes, for which she thanked her supporters before heading to Malik's watch party at the John S. Knight Center to personally congratulate him on his decisive victory.

District 4 Summit County Councilman Jeff Wilhite had 8% of votes counted, followed by 4.2% for Mark Greer and less than 1% each for Keith Mills and Joshua Schaffer.

No independents filed to run this year and the only Republican, Jim Isabella, failed to collect enough valid signatures. Barring the off chance that a write-in candidate would run and mount a potential upset, Malik is all but certain to become the next mayor.

Inside the atrium of the downtown event center, he waited until the very last precinct in Akron was reported before his Aunt Mary introduced him — calling him a man of excellence, integrity, perseverance and inclusivity.

"Akron, you picked a winner," she said, and the crowd went wild.

Malik made his way through a sea of back pats and hugs. At the microphone, he looked up at the pre-loaded speech, which he mostly followed, and then out at the diverse mix of young, old, Black and white faces that filled the room.

“How about that?” he asked with a smile.

“You’ve sent a message. You said it very loud and very clear. Thanks to the people in this room and across our city, change is coming!”

Malik vowed during campaign to change how City Hall operates

As he has throughout the campaign, even when faced with negative ads and debate-stage attacks, Malik accepted his victory with gratitude and dignity.

He thanked his six opponents and Mayor Dan Horrigan for his eight years as mayor. Malik committed to working with Horrigan to ensure continuity in service and a smooth transition.

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While honoring the legacy of the city, Malik acknowledged that he'd been elected to bring change.

“This is a really difficult time for our city," said the councilman who helped author the 2022 charter amendment that created Akron's first civilian police review board. "We are struggling to reckon with the killing of Jayland Walker and a broader legacy, a painful legacy of deep-rooted racial injustice.”

He spoke of tackling racial disparities “head-on."

"We are going to have difficult conversations," he said. "We are going to take action. We are going to build a stronger and more equitable community.”

The Rev. Ray Greene, executive director of The Freedom BLOC (Black Led Organizing Collaborative), had supported Greer's mayoral bid. His organization has led many of the protests over the Walker killing and grand jury decision not to indict the officers involved.

On hearing that Malik would likely be the next mayor, Greene said he was pleased.

"I feel good," he said. "It's change."

The Rev. Curtis Walker, an elder statesmen and longtime school board member who lost to Malik in the 2019 Ward 8 council race, told the crowd at the John S. Knight Center that Tuesday's election had been about the "old guard" versus the "progressive guard."

"I choose the progressive guard," he said.

Mosley says she is perfectly fine with Malik's win

Mosley, considered by many to be the most progressive candidate in the race, conceded at 9:20 p.m.

She thanked her family, supporters and campaign staff for the past six months of hard work. She was perfectly fine with Malik's win, she said.

"I wanted to share this moment with you all," Mosley said, "because I don't want you all to feel like you've got to console me. We ran a good race. We ran a good race."

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For a fraction of what Malik and Sommerville raised in donations, Mosley held her own, collecting an impressive 1 in every 6 votes cast Tuesday. She promised that if the winner didn't hold to their election promises, her supporters could count on seeing her again in four years.

Malik, meanwhile, gave a clear hint that he's not going anywhere in four years.

“We are going to be more strategic. We are going to have priorities that remain consistent in Year 1, in Year 2, in Year 3, in Year 4 and beyond," he said. “We know that at the center of this vision we need a City Hall that is more open, more responsive and more collaborative — a City Hall that is ready to partner with the people of this amazing city.”

'A shared positive message for the future of our city'

Malik launched his campaign in September, before Horrigan announced he would not seek a third term.

Ridiculed by former Sommerville surrogate and former Mayor Don Plusquellic for his age, Malik founded his campaign on the idea that "Akron is a great place." Around that notion, he built a winning coalition "one conversation at a time with a shared positive message for the future of our city," he said.

To the nearly 11,000 people who did not vote for him Tuesday, he promised “to be your mayor too, to earn your trust and your respect.”

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"We all want to feel safe. We all want young people to have great schools. We all want stable housing. We all want decent jobs," he said.

He promised to listen, understand and build consensus before acting because "sometimes we disagree about how to get there."

A campaign machine like Akron's never seen

The Malik campaign shattered fundraising records by raising nearly $400,000, including nearly $100,000 in the last two weeks of the race.

The campaign of four full-time staffers, along with Malik and 70 volunteers, fanned out across Akron on election day, giving voters at dozens of polling sites one last pitch on why they should elect Malik. Every weekend in March, his volunteers canvassed every corner of Akron, engaging with nearly 20,000 residents, campaign manager Maria Duvuvuei said.

"People have asked me over the last few weeks whether I’m getting tired,” Malik said, pausing in his victory speech to smile. “These folks don’t know me. The answer is that I’ve never been more energized than I am tonight. I am so hopeful for our city’s future.

"There is a lot of work ahead. We are going to continue to knock on doors. We are going to continue to talk to people, whether there’s an election or not. We are going to build a transition so that when we take office on Jan. 1, we are ready to deliver real change on Day 1.”

Sommerville concedes an expensive contest

Sommerville, who had earlier made the rounds at his election night party, gave his concession speech at about 9:30 p.m. to a crowd that included Horrigan, who avoided talking to a reporter, and Plusquellic, who said Akron had just elected a “boy-mayor.”

Sommerville said he called to congratulate Malik and wished him well.

“We’re here to assist him in any way that we can, but it’s time to move this city forward,” Sommerville said. “We’re going to still be involved in the community. We’re going to still make things happen. We’re not going anywhere because this is my home. I want to let you know we love this city and we’re going to move forward.”

Debra Sommerville, Marco’s wife, said she plans to book them a vacation.

The Democrat primary for Akron mayor was an exceptionally expensive contest with Malik and Sommerville, who loaned his own campaign $25,000, crushing the campaign fundraising record set eight years ago when Horrigan raised more than $230,000 in the last open primary for mayor.

Campaign reports with the board of elections and the clerk of City Council now cover all political donations through April 28. Malik has raised $397,231 compared to Sommerville's $343,035. The two have crushed the competition with Wilhite — propped up by a $15,000 loan from his wife in these past two weeks — raising $82,310 and Mosley raising $44,059.

The race, for the most part, had been civil with the only attacks coming from Schaffer, who regularly criticized Sommerville and Malik during a series of more than eight well-attended debates and forums. Then the Sommerville campaign, with help from Plusquellic, unleashed a series of negative radio, newspaper and mailer advertisements in the last week.

After his speech, Sommerville said he’s not sure what happened or why Malik's margin of victory was so much larger than expected. He said they ran a good campaign, raised a lot of money and made lots of phone calls.

“Sometimes, it’s just not your time,” he said.

Beacon Journal reporters Stephanie Warsmith and Derek Kreider contributed to this report. Reach reporter Doug Livingston at dlivingston@thebeaxconjournal.com or 330-996-3792.

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Akron mayor election results: Shammas Malik wins seven-way race