Mayoral hopeful Perez calling for term limits
Paul Perez, a likely mayoral candidate, said he would push for term limits should he run and claim the May 2018 election.
“I’m not looking to be king or stay around forever. If I do run and win then the suggestion will be for two terms, eight years,” Perez claimed.
Perez said a mayor’s first four years should allow for attending to serious issues and implementing strategies. “And the next four years should be about accomplishing those objectives. You shouldn’t need more than eight years,” Perez added.
Potential candidates have remained silent with many expected to announce following next Tuesday’s county and state elections.
Perez, an almost certain candidate following his 2014 runoff election loss to Mayor Eric Jackson, could make term limits interesting subject matter for mayoral debates. Former Trenton Mayor Douglas H. Palmer served five four-year terms before retiring from politics in 2010.
City Councilman Alex Bethea announced his mayoral candidacy in October.
“Sure, I would support term limits. If you can’t get your agenda up and running then pass it off to the next mayor in eight years, then maybe you shouldn’t run. We don’t need mayors who hang around for 20 years,” Bethea said.
L.A. Parker is a Trentonian columnist. Reach him at laparker@ trentonian.com. Follow him on Twitter@ laparker6.