Former Dane County Board member April Kigeya announced her campaign for Madison mayor this week, expanding a field of candidates seeking to lead the city after next spring’s election. Mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway, who was first elected in 2019, is seeking a third four-year term. Former City Council members Brian Benford and Syed Abbas have also entered the race. One City Schools founder and CEO Kaleem Caire said he plans to make his candidacy official soon and has considered running for mayor for decades. Kigeya’s campaign is focused on housing affordability, good-paying jobs and a more responsive city government. She said she wants to reform city operations so government “listens, responds and delivers for working people.” “The challenges facing our city are real. But so is our ability to solve them,” Kigeya said in a statement. “When we listen to one another, bring people together, and put working families at the center of our decisions, we can build One Madison, where all of us belong and all of us can thrive.” Rhodes-Conway is highlighting her administration’s efforts to build housing, expand bus rapid transit and pursue safer driving speeds and traffic infrastructure. Before becoming mayor, she represented parts of Madison’s North Side on the City Council from 2007 to 2013 and worked on sustainability and food-access issues. Benford, who also represented the North Side on the council, said he returned to electoral politics after stepping back in 2023 to make room for younger leaders. He cited what he described as a lack of leadership after the July 22 Madison police shooting of Corey Ruiz as a reason for entering the race. His campaign emphasizes social justice, racial equity and transparency. Benford has worked for decades as a social worker and more recently served as a success coach for UW-Madison’s Odyssey Project. He has described himself as a nontraditional politician and said his campaign will be driven by “people’s power.” Abbas, a former City Council president, announced his candidacy in late August. He is the deputy legislative director at the Wisconsin Department of Health Services. His stated priorities include housing, fiscal responsibility, social and environmental justice, and transportation. The mayor will oversee a city government with roughly 3,000 employees serving about 300,000 residents. The four-year position has no term limits and functions as Madison’s chief executive role. The mayor recommends policies to the City Council, may break council ties, can veto legislation, oversees enforcement of municipal laws, appoints department heads and some committee members, and selects deputy mayors. The race is unfolding amid criticism of the city’s handling of police accountability and the memorial encampment established after Ruiz’s death. Some residents have called for Rhodes-Conway and other city officials to resign following the reopening of Williamson and South Baldwin streets and the council’s rejection of additional funding for police oversight. Voters are also expected to weigh long-running concerns over affordable housing, public safety, racial disparities, public participation, transparency, city spending and social justice. The mayoral primary is scheduled for February, with the two top candidates advancing to the April general election. All odd-numbered City Council districts will also be on the April ballot, putting half of the council’s seats before voters.