Another candidate joins Grand Island mayoral race

GRAND ISLAND, Neb. (KSNB) - In the last mayoral election in 2018, Roger Steele ran uncontested and won; becoming mayor of Grand Island. This time around, he has some competition.

Julie Wright has put her name into the hat of candidates hoping to be the city’s next mayor. Wright has lived in GI for around 17 years now and she owns a few businesses in the city such as Big Red Treats and Tally Creative in Railside.

She said her top priority as the mayor would be to make the city more accessible and she said there was a reason she was running.

“I just feel like the mayor is really the spokesperson for the city and the energy that they can bring can help move the momentum,” Wright said. “I feel like we have great things happening in Grand Island, but so much on the horizon and I just wanted to bring a new face and energy to the city.”

Current mayor, Roger Steele, told Local4 News his thoughts on having a new candidate join the race.

“I’m glad to know that there’s another interested candidate, and there may be others as well — because the filing deadline has not passed,” Steele said. “So, it’s good to know that democracy and the democratic process is alive and well in Grand Island.”

He added, if re-elected, one of his goals would be to fully staff the Grand Island Police Department to allow them to better proactively work to reduce crime in the city. Steele said he felt his biggest accomplishment he had made in his time as mayor was how he and his team responded to the COVID-19 outbreak in the city since the start of the pandemic.

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