Clerk of Courts Pureval says he’ll bring fresh perspective to City Hall

Last Tuesday and today, Cincy Today is providing the Cincinnati mayoral candidates—Cincinnati City Councilman David Mann and Hamilton County Clerk of Courts Aftab Pureval—an opportunity to explain why you should vote for them (if you live in the city). We asked them the same set of six questions and requested that they provide their written answers before today’s first publication so that neither candidate would know the answers of the other candidate. There were no word limits, but we did remind them that they are appealing to potential voters. The answers are their own, with only minor editing. By alphabetical order, last name, we started with Councilman Mann. Next up is Clerk of Courts Pureval.

Aftab Pureval

1. Tell readers about yourself—including your educational and professional background—and why they should select you as the next Cincinnati mayor.

I’m the Hamilton County Clerk of Courts, a former Procter & Gamble attorney, and a candidate to be Cincinnati’s next mayor! I’m the child of Indian and Tibetan immigrants, and I was born and raised in Southwest Ohio before attending The Ohio State University and the University of Cincinnati College of Law—where I represented women who were survivors of abuse and could not afford an attorney. After, I served as a special assistant U.S. attorney and worked as an attorney at Procter & Gamble.

As the first Democrat to be elected Hamilton County clerk of courts in over 100 years, I have worked hard to revolutionize the courthouse. I cleaned out the culture of corruption and nepotism while cutting waste, adding more online services and opening an award-winning Help Center. I am the first countywide officeholder in Ohio to pay all employees a living wage of $16 an hour and offer paid family leave. We have accomplished all of this while saving taxpayers over $2 million, giving money back to the county every year. I believe this is the kind of bold, progressive and innovative leadership we need in City Hall right now.

I’m running for mayor to lift up all of Cincinnati. We need to come out of the gate swinging to make sure the successes of our city are felt in all 52 neighborhoods. As mayor, I will bring the fresh perspective Cincinnati needs in order to clean up corruption in City Hall and help Cincinnati rebound from COVID—by getting our economy moving again and creating jobs, opportunities and safe communities in every part of the city.

2. What are your top three priorities for the city if elected mayor?

My top priority is an economic recovery after COVID that benefits all 52 neighborhoods. In order to make sure prosperity is shared in every corner of our city, we need to rebuild our economy after COVID and prioritize growing equitably.

As mayor, I will prioritize recovering and rebuilding our economy so that all families can thrive. I will work to keep families in their homes and connect unemployed workers with in-demand jobs. I will grow our economy by streamlining the process to start a business and attract new companies and skilled workers to Cincinnati. And I will fight to share prosperity more equitably by expanding Black business ownership and homeownership, reforming the city bidding process and taking on the racial health disparities of COVID-19.

We also need to continue to reform and improve our policing and invest in public safety so every neighborhood is safe. And we need to improve access to affordable housing and basic services like public transportation to get families back on their feet.

I’ve released four comprehensive plans detailing how I will work to recover our economy, increase affordable housing, improve public safety and combat the effects of climate change. They’re available at aftabformayor.com, and I hope you will give them a read.

3. In 2020, there were 97 homicides in Cincinnati, a record. So far in 2021, they total 66, also on track for one of the highest numbers of homicides ever. The next mayor will have a big voice in choosing the next Cincinnati police chief, when Eliot Isaac retires. Explain your plans for public-safety services and your views on the recent “Defund the Police” movement.

I do not support defunding the police, but I do support reforming and improving our criminal justice system by leveraging sentencing and arrest data, officer training and accountability organizations to make Cincinnati safer for every neighborhood. We have to build on problem-oriented community policing and violence intervention, tackling the root causes of violence to make Cincinnati safe for families in every neighborhood. As mayor, I will invest in violence-intervention programs that disrupt the school-to-prison pipeline, such as our county’s Youth Advocate Program. I will partner with the federal government to combat illegal gun trafficking and direct resources toward our most-affected communities. And I will champion comprehensive equity in our economic, housing and justice systems to address the root causes of violence.

We have to do everything we can to ensure mutual trust between our police and the communities they serve. The good news is that here in Cincinnati, because of the landmark Collaborative Agreement, we have a framework to push us forward. In order to make sure every single neighborhood is truly safe, we have to get back to the fundamentals of the Collaborative Agreement. Right now, the Citizen Complaint Authority is underfunded and understaffed. Without being properly empowered, it can’t live up to its charge of being an independent and outside organization that investigates and holds our police department accountable. While the CCA received funding this year, we need to consistently fully fund that organization. We also need to do what we know works: making sure police officers are members of the communities they serve—engaging in community policing and being visible.

Finally, we need to immediately get to work on improving how we respond to emergencies by leaning more heavily on trained, unarmed crisis responders who specialize in the particular traumas and mental health issues that comprise a large fraction of crisis responses—and an even larger fraction of use-of-force incidents.

We have a lot of work ahead of us, and we can’t just be reactionary. We have to declare a war on poverty in our city. To build an economy with better wages, paid family leave, robust opportunities to learn new trades and real opportunities for people to create a meaningful life. Economic inclusion is a must, especially for our Black and brown communities. The only way to fully address crime is to really invest in all 52 neighborhoods.

I’m proud to be the only candidate in the race with a comprehensive criminal justice and public safety plan. It can be viewed at aftabformayor.com.

4. In the past 19 months, three Cincinnati City Council members were indicted on federal corruption charges, and a fourth was charged with tampering with records. How will you ensure that high ethical standards are met in your dealings with City Council and in your administration?

The corruption in City Hall has been a dark chapter in Cincinnati’s history, and we have to get it right—both for corruption’s sake, and because public trust will be absolutely essential if we want to grow and prosper as a city.

We have unfortunately seen what happens when politicians ignore rules and guidelines, and we need to be skeptical about any politician getting involved in the specifics of development deals. As mayor, I will get us back to the fundamentals of the charter and empower the professionals working in City Hall to do their jobs free of influence from politicians. If I’m lucky enough to be elected, there will be a bright, clear line between the professionals and the politicians.

We have to do everything we can to prevent corruption, and the best way to do that is to increase transparency. Right now, our ethics disclosures for local elected officials do not provide enough information to hold our elected officials accountable for relationships with people who might have business in front of the city. Fortunately, we have a model in Ohio for improving our disclosure standards. The state legislature in Ohio has much more rigorous ethical reporting standards. The first thing we should do to drive more transparency and prevent ethical violations is to raise our ethical standards to meet those of the state legislature. This is a Day One action item for my administration.

I will always be transparent with the people of Cincinnati. For example, I do not accept corporate PAC money, and all our contributions are posted on our website. The people of Cincinnati deserve to know exactly who they’re voting for.

5. Who inspires you and why?

For me, there has been no greater role model than Marian Spencer. As a public servant and an activist, she fought against injustice, she broke down barriers, and she dedicated her life to the education and inspiration of the next generation of change-makers. Cincinnati needs a mayor who will motivate those around them to reject the status quo in favor of real, positive change. I look forward to the opportunity to work hard every day to live up to her example.

6. What makes you passionate (issues, personal or professional life or hobbies, for instance—open-ended)?

Becoming a father has completely reshaped my passions and motivations in life. When my son, Bodhi, was born almost two years ago to the day, everything changed in an instant. This was true for practical reasons—I have always been a creature of habit and routine, but good luck telling your crying infant that a 3:30 am visit to the crib doesn’t work for your schedule—but also because every aspect of my worldview and my dreams for the future now center around him. Constantly working to create a life where he grows up happy and healthy is my core mission.

The challenges I see in Cincinnati, and my most fundamental reasons for running for mayor, have grounding in the fact that I will do anything I can to make sure my son grows up in a city he can be proud of—a city that supports its most vulnerable, and a city that is full of pride, joy and good neighbors. It’s something that all of our children deserve.