District of Columbia Mayor Vincent Gray has finally announced his decision to run in the district’s upcoming mayoral race.
Gray confirmed Monday that he will be running for a second term despite the controversy that surrounded his previous term following a federal investigation into his 2010 campaign. Four campaign employees pleaded guilty to felonies, two of which involved illegally spending $635,000 in funds.
Gray continues to maintain his innocence in the matter and collected his nominating petitions at the D.C. Board of Elections Monday afternoon.
The mayor joins the race very late, as the Democratic primary is set for April 1. He is required to get 2,000 signatures within the next month to be on the ballot.
He credits his long awaited candidacy confirmation to his waiting on the investigation to come to a close.
“I was hoping that all the 2010 stuff would be over…It isn’t, and it will continue on however long the U.S. attorney chooses to investigate,” he said.
The District of Columbia has seen a decrease in crime and vast improvements in the school system since Gray took office.
He hopes to increase his approval ratings that significantly plummeted as details of the investigation were made public.
