An alderwoman from south St. Louis is taking a second crack at the mayor鈥檚 office.
鈥淚 believe in St. Louis - but we have a lot of work to do,鈥� 8th Ward Alderwoman Cara Spencer announcing her candidacy on Thursday. 鈥淥ur city isn鈥檛 meeting the needs of her people.鈥�
In an interview later Thursday, Spencer said, 鈥淲e鈥檙e not getting the basics right.鈥�
She pointed to the conditions of the city鈥檚 roads, rising traffic violence and an underfunded refuse division in the fiscal 2025 budget, despite the investment of $500 million in federal COVID relief dollars.
Those factors, she said, are helping drive the city鈥檚 population loss of nearly 7% since 2020.
鈥淥ur community is leaving, and we鈥檝e got to turn that around,鈥� she said.
Spencer said she is better equipped to build the coalitions that will be needed for the city to succeed.
鈥淥ne of the most pressing issues facing our region in general is the failure to work with folks with whom you don鈥檛 agree,鈥� she said, adding that members of the Board of Aldermen often find out about new city initiatives from press releases.
鈥淭here鈥檚 really no collaboration and coordination, or at least to a level that we need to be functioning at a top level,鈥� she said.
Mayor Tishaura Jones鈥� campaign aides said in a statement they look forward to a race centered on the voters.
Jones beat Spencer by 4 percentage points in the 2021 mayor鈥檚 race. Spencer called that a humbling loss.
鈥淏ut I think one of the most important lessons I learned from that was, you know, just taking a step back and learning how to listen a little better.鈥�
Because Spencer鈥檚 8th Ward seat is not up for reelection until 2025, she did not need to choose between running for alderwoman or mayor.
鈥淭hat is a lucky position,鈥� she said. 鈥淏ut at the end of the day, I feel like serving as mayor is something I truly believe in and I want to do, regardless of what that might cost.鈥�
Spencer鈥檚 aldermanic campaign committee had about $46,500 as of an April report. During her last run for mayor, she raised .
having $138,000 in her campaign account in April.
