The crowded Wilmington mayoral race just got a little more packed. City council president Theo Gregory has confirmed he's running.
Gregory has been considering jumping into the race since August. On Monday, the longtime public servant officially announced his candidacy and launched a campaign website.
He says he's making public safety his top priority: "putting together a plan, being responsive to the community and staying on message with respect to that plan," he says.
"And we have to influence education and the development of our youth," he says. "I believe that's actually a component of public safety, to make sure we have aggressive policies and programs for our kids."
Now, the Democrat says he'll work on amassing volunteers and doing "ground work."
"People have encouraged me to run, they've been encouraging me for the last year, year and a half to run," he says. "It's really ramped up, and folks are really excited about my running."
Gregory plans to keep his seat on council as he campaigns. He'll face incumbent mayor Dennis Williams in next year's election, as well as former council president Norman Griffiths and former city councilman Kevin Kelley.
Council member Hanifa Shabazz is running for Gregory's council president seat.
