A Statement from Mayor Rick Rector

An hour ago, Mayor Rick Rector released the following statement to Gossips and the Register-Star.

Hello Hudson! 

Being your Mayor has been one of the best and most rewarding experiences of my life and I will always be grateful for the opportunity. 

This past June’s Democratic Primary did not go as I had hoped. As many of you know, upon hearing the results from the five wards that evening, I immediately congratulated Kamal Johnson on his impressive win. I also thanked my many supporters, volunteers and friends who stood behind me with their tireless support. I will never forget the hard work, kindness and encouragement they gave me this year and in previous elections. Their continued support during the past couple of months has meant so much. Their encouragement and support has been everything. 

Being Mayor has never been about me. It has been about the wonderful community I am able to serve by giving my time, attention, and devotion to all citizens of this great city. My campaign of ONE HUDSON has always been my guiding principle and will continue to be as long as I serve as your Mayor. I have only wanted to do what is right and best for the entire community, trying hard to avoid agendas that do not reflect the entire city. 

I am exceptionally proud of my accomplishments in the short one and a half years I have been in office. 

We are living in extraordinary political times that have, all too frequently on the national level, become ugly, mean, divisive and contrary to the ideal of bringing different groups together for the betterment of the whole. While I try hard to avoid bringing the national debate into our small city, it is often impossible, because we often do mirror what is happening at a national level. 

I desperately want a unified Hudson. I want a Hudson that respects its leaders and the work they are doing and have done. I want a Hudson where race, gender, religion or sexual preference are not factors in an election. 

I have been honored to have twice been endorsed for Mayor by my own political party, the Democrats, as well as the Republican Party and the Conservative party. I take these endorsements very seriously because I have wanted to be everyone’s Mayor and let everyone know they have importance in my administration and are all welcome at the table. I am a proud, progressive and liberal Democrat. 

During the recent Democratic Primary, members of my political party felt that my opponent is better suited for the position and I respect this and will abide by it. I do not want to be a reason for more political divide in this special city that I and many others have chosen to be our home. I want a unified Hudson where everyone can be proud of all aspects of the community. Consequently, I am ending my campaign for Mayor and will focus on working solely on the business of the City and look forward to a productive few months in serving the community and tending to the job of being your Mayor. 

Hudson is in great shape---the streets are alive with residents and visitors enjoying years of growth brought about by the hard work of entrepreneurs, activists, investors, talented and caring citizens. We continue to face many issues associated with successful places where people want to live, raise their families and build businesses and we all need to continue working together to make our home always better. We are all so very lucky to be part of this wonderful community.