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Sitting Chester City Councilmembers, front, from left Danielle Hughes and Tabatha Strother were joined be new councilmembers Ursula Boyd-Crosby and standing, center, new Mayor Carlos Williams and from left newly reelected Councilman Wade Young, and new Councilmembers Tony Nelson and David Claytor.
City of Chester Mayor-Elect Carlos Williams was sworn in by Rev. Ina C. Harris.
Ward I Councilmember Wade Young was sworn in by his father, Wade Young.
Ward III Councilmember-Elect Ursula Boyd-Crosby was sworn in by the Rev. Otha Smith. She was accompanied by her father, Robert Boyd Sr., her husband Mitchell Crosby Sr. and her sons Lt. J.P. McNeill and Mitchell Crosby II.
Ward IV Councilmember-Elect Tony Nelson was also sworn in by Rev. Otha Smith and she was attended by her daughters Decandice Young and Vivian Nealy.
Ward II Councilmember-Elect David Claytor was sworn in by Judge Angel Underwood while his wife Elizabeth held the Bible.
Sitting Chester City Councilmembers, front, from left Danielle Hughes and Tabatha Strother were joined be new councilmembers Ursula Boyd-Crosby and standing, center, new Mayor Carlos Williams and from left newly reelected Councilman Wade Young, and new Councilmembers Tony Nelson and David Claytor.
Just after he accepted the gavel from outgoing Mayor Wanda Stringfellow, newly-elected and sworn Mayor Carlos Williams proclaimed from the dais to an overflow crowd: “It’s a new day in Chester.”
Mayor Williams will be helped to usher in the new day in Chester by several new (and one returning) City Council members who won their seats in the May 2nd election.
At the beginning of the meeting, Mayor Wanda Stringfellow read the results of the certification of the election results by the Chester County Board of Canvassers.
Mayor-Elect Williams was sworn in by Rev. Ina C. Harris.
Ward I Councilmember Wade Young was sworn in by his father, Wade Young.
Ward II Councilmember-Elect David Claytor was sworn in by Judge Angel Underwood while his wife Elizabeth held the Bible.
Ward III Councilmember-Elect Ursula Boyd-Crosby was sworn in by the Rev. Otha Smith. She was accompanied by her father, Robert Boyd Sr., her husband Mitchell Crosby Sr. and her sons Lt. J.P. McNeill and Mitchell Crosby II.
Ward IV Councilmember-Elect Tony Nelson was also sworn in by Rev. Otha Smith and she was attended by her daughters Decandice Young and Vivian Nealy.
Before adjourning the new Mayor had some words for the citizens.
“Before we close, I want to say to the people of Chester, it’s a new day. This council will work together; everyone on this council wants to see the city move forward and that’s what we’re going to do. On every endeavor and every project, we’re going to vote together. We need the community’s support to back us. So with your help and our leadership, we’re going to move this city forward,” Mayor Williams said.
The new councilmembers took their places on the dais and the special meeting of Chester City Council was adjourned.
The election results had been certified earlier on Thursday. Williams, who has been on Chester City Council for two terms, defeated incumbent Mayor Stringfellow by a 341-273 margin. When he was first elected in 2015, Williams pledged to only serve on Council for eight years and made good on that promise. During his time in office, Williams has worked to attract businesses back to downtown, hire qualified candidates for department head openings and to clean up the City.
Stringfellow has served four non-consecutive terms as mayor. She was first elected in 1999, won reelection by a single-digit margin in 2003, then lost the seat to her predecessor, the late Mitch Foster, in 2007. She reclaimed the seat in 2011, lost it to George Caldwell in 2015 and won it back four years later.
Ken Lebbon finished in third place in the run for mayor with 168 votes and Betty Johnson Leake culled 14 votes.
In the Ward I council race, incumbent Young won reelection by a 457-312 margin over Darlene Wright. In Ward II, Claytor took an easy victory as he faced no opposition. Incumbent TaTanish Campbell opted not to seek a second term in office for that seat.
In Ward III, longtime incumbent Annie Reid lost a close race to Boyd-Crosby 397-366. The Ward IV race was close as well (Williams gave up that seat to run for mayor) with Tony Nelson defeating former Councilman William King by 11 votes (323 to 312), with Jennifer Brecheisen coming in third at 140 votes. The winning margin by Nelson was just beyond the margin that would necessitate a recount.
Editor Travis Jenkins contributed to this story.
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