C. Kim Bracey is an American

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...

. She served as the 24th

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 a ...

York, Pennsylvania York ( Pennsylvania Dutch: ''Yarrick''), known as the White Rose City (after the symbol of the House of York), is the county seat of York County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is located in the south-central region of the state. The populati ...

, from January 4, 2010, to January 2, 2018. She was the first

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

mayor of the city and the second woman to hold the office. Betty Marshall, who was elected in 1977, served as the first female mayor of York from 1978 to 1982.

Biography

Early life

Bracey was born in

. She graduated from

William Penn Senior High School The William Penn Senior High School is a large, urban, public high school serving the City of York, Pennsylvania in York County, Pennsylvania. There were 876 pupils enrolled in 2014. It is the sole high school operated by the School District o ...

and attended

Bloomsburg University Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania (Bloomsburg, BU or Bloom) is a campus of Commonwealth University of Pennsylvania and it is located in Bloomsburg, Pennsylvania. It is part of the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education (PASSHE). The ...

before enlisting in the

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Signal ...

in 1984. Bracey was honorably discharged from the Air Force in 1994, reaching the rank of

technical sergeant Technical sergeant is the name of two current and two former enlisted ranks in the United States Armed Forces, as well as in the U.S. Civil Air Patrol. Outside the United States, it is used only by the Philippine Army, Philippine Air Force and th ...

(E-6). She moved back to York in 1994 after leaving the Air Force and took a position with the Crispus Attucks Association. Bracey is married to her husband, Vernon (who petitioned for divorce in 2011;). She is a member of the Friendship Baptist Church in York.

Political career

In 2003, York Mayor John Brenner appointed Bracey as the Director of the Department of Community Development. She served in the office from June 2003 until January 2009. Mayor John S. Brenner announced on July 2, 2008, that he would not seek re-election in 2009, more than a year before the mayoral election. Brenner cited the impending birth of his second child as a major factor in his decision to retire from the mayor's office. He endorsed Bracey, who had served as his Director of the Department of Community Development, in the 2009 election. Bracey resigned as director of community development, in January 2009 which is the city's

economic development In the economics study of the public sector, economic and social development is the process by which the economic well-being and quality of life of a nation, region, local community, or an individual are improved according to targeted goals and o ...

agency, to pursue her campaign for mayor. Bracey defeated three other Democratic candidates in the

primary election Primary elections, or direct primary are a voting process by which voters can indicate their preference for their party's candidate, or a candidate in general, in an upcoming general election, local election, or by-election. Depending on the ...

on May 19, 2009. Bracey won the general election on November 3, 2009, beating her Republican opponent, Wendell Banks. Bracey received 2,582, or 81% of the total vote, while Banks placed a distant second with 602 votes, or 19%. Bracey was sworn in as York's 24th mayor on January 4, 2010. She was re-elected in 2013, though lost a second re-election attempt in 2017 to city council president

Michael Helfrich Michael may refer to: People * Michael (given name), a given name * Michael (surname), including a list of people with the surname Michael Given name "Michael" * Michael (archangel), ''first'' of God's archangels in the Jewish, Christian and ...

, who was inaugurated to succeed Bracey on January 2, 2018.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bracey, Kim Living people Year of birth missing (living people) Mayors of York, Pennsylvania Women mayors of places in Pennsylvania Pennsylvania Democrats United States Air Force airmen African-American mayors in Pennsylvania Women in the United States Air Force African-American female military personnel 2012 United States presidential electors 21st-century American women politicians 21st-century American politicians 21st-century African-American women 21st-century African-American politicians African-American United States Air Force personnel African-American women mayors