Quinton Donald Lucas (born August 19, 1984) is an American politician serving as the 55th

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well as ...

of Kansas City, Missouri. He was elected in 2019. He is affiliated with the Democratic party and is the city's third African-American mayor. Before his election, he was a law school professor, community leader, and city council member.

Early life and education

Lucas was born in Kansas City, Missouri, to Quincy Bennett Johnson, a single mother. He never met his father. He earned a scholarship to

the Barstow School The Barstow School, formerly called Miss Barstow’s School, is a secular, coeducational, independent preparatory school in Kansas City, Missouri, USA. It was co-founded in 1884 by Mary Louise Barstow and Ada Brann. The Barstow School enrolls 75 ...

, a private school characterized by more comfortable socioeconomic circumstances than those prevailing in Kansas City's low-income East Side. Johnson said, "He saw we were struggling ... One time we lived in a hotel, and it was horrible. Quinton would go in the bathroom to study." He was elected student body president twice and was one of the class's top students. According to Lucas, he experienced a conflict of identity due to the disparity between his social background and his ambitions. He was reluctant about leaving Kansas City upon graduation. Encouraged by his college counselor, he attended

Washington University Washington University in St. Louis (WashU or WUSTL) is a private research university with its main campus in St. Louis County, and Clayton, Missouri. Founded in 1853, the university is named after George Washington. Washington University is ...

. He majored in

political science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and power, and the analysis of political activities, political thought, political behavior, and associated constitutions and ...

, and studied in

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring count ...

. Living in

Cape Town Cape Town ( af, Kaapstad; , xh, iKapa) is one of South Africa's three capital cities, serving as the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. It is the legislative capital of the country, the oldest city in the country, and the second larges ...

, he observed the political and cultural legacy of

apartheid Apartheid (, especially South African English: , ; , "aparthood") was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. Apartheid was ...

. This experience strongly influenced his perception of the inequalities experienced by

Black people Black is a racialized classification of people, usually a political and skin color-based category for specific populations with a mid to dark brown complexion. Not all people considered "black" have dark skin; in certain countries, often ...

in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., federal district, five ma ...

. He attended law school at

Cornell Cornell University is a private statutory land-grant research university based in Ithaca, New York. It is a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1865 by Ezra Cornell and Andrew Dickson White, Cornell was founded with the intention to teac ...

, encouraged by a professor to assist in Curtis Osborne's appeal for clemency. Though the appeal failed, Lucas found the legal experience to be transformative. Lucas joined the

University of Kansas The University of Kansas (KU) is a public research university with its main campus in Lawrence, Kansas, United States, and several satellite campuses, research and educational centers, medical centers, and classes across the state of Kansas. Tw ...

Faculty of Law in 2012. At KU, he taught

administrative law Administrative law is the division of law that governs the activities of executive branch agencies of government. Administrative law concerns executive branch rule making (executive branch rules are generally referred to as " regulations"), ...

contract law A contract is a legally enforceable agreement between two or more parties that creates, defines, and governs mutual rights and obligations between them. A contract typically involves the transfer of goods, services, money, or a promise to ...

, and securities regulation.

Early political career

In 2015, Lucas ran for a city council seat in the Third District

at Large At large may refer to: * ''At Large'' (album), a 1959 album by The Kingston Trio * At large (fugitive), a classification for a fugitive on the run * At-large At large (''before a noun'': at-large) is a description for members of a governing bod ...

. His campaign advocated for the selling of

Kemper Arena The Hy-Vee Arena, previously known as Kemper Arena, is an indoor arena located in Kansas City, Missouri. Prior to conversion to a youth sports and community gymnasium facility, Kemper Arena was previously a 19,500-seat professional sports aren ...

instead of costly demolition, and supported public transit with future and current rail systems. He won with more than 70% of the vote. He said the city's greatest challenge was bridging the cultural and socioeconomic gaps between the eastern and western sides: "How do we get people from jobs in my part of the city, the east side of Kansas City, off into other parts of the city or even to

Kansas Kansas () is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its capital is Topeka, and its largest city is Wichita. Kansas is a landlocked state bordered by Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to ...

?" In 2016, Lucas voted for a blight designation in the southern part of the city to allow for 80 million dollars in investment. The 80 million dollars is to be used to build residential units and commercial spaces. Critics say that the city has incentivized too many developments in prosperous areas and has failed to do so in poorer community areas His primary focus in city council became housing policy. He advocated both the development of new housing supply and the renovation of existing properties. He was decisive in shaping a 2018 ordinance that reduced the city's definition of affordable rent as up to $1,100 per month, which is 30% of the city's median income. Lucas told the ''

Kansas City Business Journal American City Business Journals, Inc. (ACBJ) is an American newspaper publisher based in Charlotte, North Carolina. ACBJ publishes The Business Journals, which contains local business news for 44 markets in the United States, Hemmings Motor New ...

'' that "$1,000 a month is still pretty high for a lot of people, but what we’re trying to do is say that we will not give incentives based on affordability standards for units that are north of that figure.” During discussions surrounding the finance and development of renovating the Kansas City International Airport in August 2017, Lucas advocated for transparent municipal decision-making by calling for fewer closed Council sessions. He told ''

The Kansas City Star ''The Kansas City Star'' is a newspaper based in Kansas City, Missouri. Published since 1880, the paper is the recipient of eight Pulitzer Prizes. ''The Star'' is most notable for its influence on the career of President Harry S. Truman and as ...

'', "I think the spirit of the

Sunshine Law Freedom of information laws allow access by the general public to data held by national governments and, where applicable, by state and local governments. The emergence of freedom of information legislation was a response to increasing dissatisf ...

is not for council to deliberate on myriad issues on public policy in secret."

Mayor of Kansas City

In the 2019 Kansas City mayoral election, 11 candidates ran to replace term-limited incumbent Sly James. The field later narrowed to Lucas and fellow city council member Jolie Justus. Lucas won with approximately 59% of the vote. In late August 2020, a group of citizens criticized Lucas's

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identified ...

mask regulations as harmful to small businesses and ran a failed petition to remove him from office. In June 2021, Lucas co-founded the coalition of 11 mayors, called

Mayors Organized for Reparations and Equity Mayors Organized for Reparations and Equity (MORE) is a coalition of U.S. mayors committed to paying reparations to African American citizens of their cities. The association was announced on June 18, 2021, in commemoration of the first federally r ...

(MORE), dedicated to starting pilot programs for

reparations for slavery in the United States Reparations for slavery is the application of the concept of reparations to victims of slavery or their descendants. There are concepts for reparations in legal philosophy and reparations in transitional justice. In the US, reparations for sla ...

."11 U.S. Mayors Commit To Developing Pilot Projects For Reparations,"
''Associated Pres'' (June 18, 2021)Martin, Jacob
"Mayor Lucas discusses national coalition for achieving reparations and when KC might see results,"
'' The Pitch'' (June 25, 2021). Lucas is a member of the Kansas City Board of Police Commissioners. Two gun ordinances were passed, the first ordinance makes it illegal for anyone under the age of 18 to be in possession of a handgun or ammunition. The Police have a higher authority to confiscate the contraband. The second ordinance makes it illegal to sell or give a gun to a minor without the consent of a parent or for military service. If ordinances are violated, the violator faces jail time, a fine, or is directed to a diversion program.

Personal life

Lucas is a lifelong fan of the

Kansas City Chiefs The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Chiefs compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The t ...

, reportedly taking detailed notes on the performances of Kansas City sports teams. He married his longtime girlfriend Katherine Carttar on April 9, 2021. That month, their son, Bennett, was born. They live in the historic

18th and Vine district 18 (eighteen) is the natural number following 17 and preceding 19. In mathematics * Eighteen is a composite number, its divisors being 1, 2, 3, 6 and 9. Three of these divisors (3, 6 and 9) add up to 18, hence 18 is a semiperfect number. ...

References

External links