MILWAUKEE COUNTY

Milwaukee Ald. Marina Dimitrijevic enters race for mayor, touts local government experience

Alison Dirr
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Milwaukee Ald. Marina Dimitrijevic is running for mayor.

Milwaukee Ald. Marina Dimitrijevic is joining a growing field to succeed Mayor Tom Barrett. 

Dimitrijevic, who served on the Milwaukee County Board of Supervisors from 2004 until winning a seat on the city's Common Council last year, said her local elected experience sets her apart from other candidates.

"Our city needs leadership in a new way and leadership that will challenge the status quo, and we need it now more than ever," said Dimitrijevic, who represents the city's Bay View area and announced her mayoral bid Monday. "Being at that crossroads we have some really tough decisions ahead, and I feel that I'm the woman for the job."

Already in the race are Common Council President Cavalier Johnson, Milwaukee County Sheriff Earnell Lucas and former south side Milwaukee Ald. Bob Donovan.

Barrett, who was first elected in 2004, is expected to leave the city in the middle of his fifth term if confirmed by the U.S. Senate as the next ambassador to Luxembourg. He was nominated by President Joe Biden. When his nomination will be taken up in the U.S. Senate is uncertain.

When Barrett leaves, Johnson will become acting mayor until an election is held to finish out Barrett's term.

Dimitrijevic said as mayor she would focus on ensuring that Milwaukeeans have the city services they depend on and addressing the deep racial disparities in the city. 

"When I make this declaration for mayor, I’m also declaring an anti-racist agenda," she said. "That means that we refuse to accept some of the challenges that we can all list that are really rooted in racism."

She said it was unacceptable that a resident's ZIP code in Milwaukee can define that person's future.

Dimitrijevic highlighted work over her career, including her push to get $7 million in federal aid to the city allocated to early childhood education initiatives. The cost of child care can take a significant percentage of families' income, particularly for low-income households, while teacher turnover is driven by factors including low wages, according to city documents.

More:Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett's eventual departure opens door to generational change, comes during trying time for city

More:Milwaukee Common Council members put forward more than $1 billion worth of ideas for federal aid spending

Growing up on the city's south side, attending Milwaukee Public Schools, being a mother in addition to the daughter of a Serbian immigrant and wife of an immigrant from Uruguay are also parts of her story, she said.

Regarding the historic level of violence Milwaukee has been experiencing, she said the city needed to do more to address root causes of violence and the cycle of trauma.

She pointed to legislation she authored with Ald. Milele Coggs to put $16.8 million in federal aid toward violence prevention efforts and her leadership of the council's Public Safety and Health Committee. More than $3 million in federal aid funding for the Office of Violence Prevention was ultimately included in legislation that will go before the Common Council this week.

Contact Alison Dirr at 414-224-2383 or adirr@jrn.com. Follow her on Twitter @AlisonDirr