Michael B. Hancock (born 1969) is an American businessman, author and politician, serving as the 45th and current mayor of Denver, Colorado. He was sworn in on July 18, 2011 after defeating Chris Romer in a runoff election on June 7, 2011. He was easily reelected with no significant opposition in 2015 despite reports that he paid for sex from an illegal escort service.
He is Denver's second black mayor after Wellington Webb and a deacon at the New Hope Baptist Church.
Video Michael Hancock (Colorado politician)
Biography
Born in Fort Hood, Texas, Hancock moved with his family to Denver as an infant. He and his twin sister are the youngest of ten children. According to a DNA analysis performed on his behalf, he descends mainly from Cameroonian slaves.
He graduated from Denver's Manual High School (1987) and earned a bachelor's degree in political science from Hastings College in Nebraska (1991). He also earned a Masters of Arts degree in public administration management from the University of Colorado Denver.
At the time he was elected Mayor, Hancock was in his second term as a member of the Denver City Council. During his tenure on the City Council, he served two terms as Council president, the last ending in 2008.
Hancock and former Colorado State Senator Peter Groff co-wrote the book, Standing in the Gap: Leadership for the 21st Century, published in 2004.
Michael Hancock is married to actress and vocalist Mary Louise Lee. They have 3 children.
On May 8, 2012, Hancock visited the city of Reykjavík and he and the mayor of Reykjavík, Jón Gnarr, met in Höfði.
In the 1986 Denver Broncos Super Bowl season, he was the Broncos' mascot "Huddles," making $25 an hour.
Hancock was named a 2014 Aspen Institute Rodel Fellow.
Maps Michael Hancock (Colorado politician)
Business ventures
Hancock started his business career in the early 1990s, holding down two jobs at the Denver Housing Authority and the National Civic League--while also pursuing a Master's degree.
At the Housing Authority, he designed, implemented and oversaw the first-ever athletic, cultural and leadership-training programs for 11,000 inner-city kids living in public housing. Hancock also helped write a state law outlawing drug possession within 100 feet of public housing.
With the National Civic League, Hancock helped communities, nonprofits and other clients all over the country craft and enact strategic plans to solve economic and budget challenges, increase civic participation and improve governance.
He joined the Metro Denver's Urban League affiliate in 1995 as program director at a time when the economic-empowerment and civil rights organization was struggling--struggling so much that his first paycheck bounced. Undaunted, Hancock rose through the ranks, developing a strategic plan, overseeing day-to-day operations and leading fundraising efforts. He became Executive Vice President, interim President and then President in 1999.
At 29 years old, Hancock was the youngest leader of an Urban League chapter anywhere in the United States. He turned around an organization that lacked focus, relevance or a strategy. He developed a talented staff, created a nationally-recognized and award-winning job training program, and built private sector partnerships with companies like Qwest, Comcast and AT&T.
Denver City Council
After almost five years as President of Metro Denver Urban League, Hancock stepped down in 2003 when voters in northeast Denver's 11th District elected him to the Denver City Council and was re-elected in 2007. His council peers unanimously chose him to serve two terms as Council President from 2006 to 2008. He presided over the creation of the Denver Pre-School Initiative, strategies to fight foreclosures, and the implementation of the largest infrastructure improvement in Denver history.
While on the City Council, Hancock was widely recognized as one of the most accessible, constituent-oriented elected officeholders anywhere. He was a leader on neighborhood issues, citywide finances, economic development, and children's issues.
Mayor of Denver
Hancock's road to the Mayor's Mansion began with political domino effects. Then- Governor Bill Ritter announced on January 5, 2010, that he wouldn't seek re-election to a second term due to low approval ratings and struggling polling numbers in the 2010 Gubernatorial election.
It was rumored that then-United States Secretary of the Interior and former United States Senator Ken Salazar was going to run (considering Salazar had won statewide office as Colorado State Attorney General in 1998 and 2002 and United States Senator in 2004), but on January 7, he announced he wouldn't seek the governorship and endorsed two-term Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper for the governorship. Five days later, Hickenlooper announced his candidacy for the governorship and he went on to defeat Republican nominee Dan Maes and former U.S. Congressman Tom Tancredo of the Constitution Party in a three-way race on November 2, 2010 with 51.0% and was re-elected in 2014.
Hickenlooper's election to the Colorado Governor's Mansion opened up the Mayor's office, which began a free-for-all. In the May 3, 2011 First Primary: Hancock was among the final 2 finishers against State Senator Chris Romer. Romer led the first round with 31, 901 votes (28.49%) to Hancock's 30, 314 votes (27.04%). Hancock went on to defeat Romer in the June 7, 2011 Runoff election in a landslide with 70,780 votes (58.08%) to Romer's 51,082 votes (41.92%). Hancock was inaugurated as the 56th Mayor of Denver, Colorado on July 21, 2011.
Hancock was re-elected overwhelmingly on May 5, 2015 in a landslide victory with 75,774 (80.16%) against Marcus Giavanni, who pulled a 2nd place win with 8,033 votes (8.50%) (No Mayoral Debates 2015), Hancock and was inaugurated on July 20, 2015 at the Ellie Caulkins Opera House.
In May 2018, it was reported he was outraised by entrepeneur Kayvan Khalatbari for his upcoming re-election bid in the first reporting quarter of the year.
Controversies
Mayor Hancock has drawn international attention for his oppositional positions towards the city's homeless residents, including threats from Anonymous in 2016 to expose alleged ties to an escort service. Political activists Occupy Denver opposed legislation he signed in 2012 banning unauthorized camping in 2012; critics said it criminalized homelessness.
In 2016, following a speech on poverty and hope through low-income housing, his police force cracked down on the residents, which Denver Homeless Out Loud livestreamed callous officials partaking in sweeps.
The ACLU of Colorado issued oppositional statements toward the mayor's office for the misuse of appropriations designed to help the homeless, instead used to evict them. As winter approached, the police force was condemned by the organization for confiscating the bedding materials of the residents.
Housing controversy
In 2018, it was reported the city's affordable housing program permitted overqualified purchasers, resulting in the loss of compliance for the program from the Land Title Association of Colorado.
Sexual harassment
Michael B. Hancock admitted to sending suggestive text messages to his female subordinate, Leslie Branch-Wise, during his first year as the Mayor of Denver, Colorado. He acknowledged his behavior as "inappropriate" when the victim, a Denver Police Department Detective, gave an interview in 2018 to disclose the sexual harassment she experienced. By providing several suggestive text messages from Hancock, the detective provided a glimpse into the suffering she encountered during the time she worked for Hancock's security detail in 2012. Following the Detective's interview, Hancock issued a blanket public apology to the victim, his family and the people of Denver. Hancock explained, "I made a mistake. I'm human. I never purport to be perfect." He called the circumstances "wrought with politics" and concluded, "It was just one of those things where I got too casual and too familiar, and I learned a lesson from that." The city paid the officer $75,000 as part of a settlement.
See also
- List of mayors of the largest 50 US cities
References
External links
- Campaign website
- City Council website for District 11
- Appearances on C-SPAN
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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