Brad Lee Spencer (Mayor of Independence, Minnesota, candidate 2024)

Ballotpedia does not currently maintain this page. Please contact us with any updates.

Brad Lee Spencer

Nonpartisan

Candidate, Mayor of Independence

Elections and appointments

Last election

November 5, 2024

Personal

Birthplace

Minneapolis, MN

Religion

Lutheran - ELCA

Profession

Financial Advisor

Brad Lee Spencer ran for election to the Mayor of Independence in Minnesota. He was on the ballot in the general election on November 5, 2024.^[source]

Spencer completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2024. Click here to read the survey answers.

Biography

Brad Lee Spencer provided the following biographical information via Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey on October 4, 2024:

• Birth date: June 24, 1960
• Birth place: Minneapolis, Minnesota
• High school: Duluth East (MN)
• Bachelor's: Gustavus Adolphus College (St. Peter, MN), 1982
• Gender: Male
• Religion: Lutheran - ELCA
• Profession: Financial Advisor
• Prior offices held:
  • Independence City Councilmember (2010-Prsnt)
• Incumbent officeholder: No
• Campaign slogan: Experience Matters

Elections

General election

General election for Mayor of Independence

George Lachicotte and Brad Lee Spencer ran in the general election for Mayor of Independence on November 5, 2024.

		Candidate
	Submit photo	George Lachicotte (Nonpartisan)
		Brad Lee Spencer (Nonpartisan)

---

	Incumbency information for this election was not available.
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Endorsements

Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for Spencer in this election.

Campaign themes

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection

Brad Lee Spencer completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2024. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Spencer's responses.

Expand all | Collapse all

Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

My wife Lisa and I moved to Independence in 1997 and raised our family here. Independence is a gem, great schools, a rural feel, close o the metropolitan area for all its entertainment and services. I will do everything I can to keep it a great place for families to live and grow. Our mantra: Be good, Do the right thing, leave a place better than when you arrived.

Please list below 3 key messages of your campaign. What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?

• fiscal responsibility - budgets should be easy to understand and decisions should be made with the same logic as used to make our family or business spending choices
• Public decision making - important decisions need to be made in the public forum not behind closed doors
• Service mindset - public representatives should be motivated by service to community and others. Self promotion and personal interests should be left out of the discussion

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

local control of community development policy - having local development controlled by non-elected representatives who use infrastructure to force development in directions contrary to the constituents desires and without a useful understanding of the differences between developed and rural communities is unfair and needs to be vehemently opposed.

What characteristics or principles are most important for an elected official?

Honesty, basic knowledge of financial management, skills in decision making and conflict management

What do you believe are the core responsibilities for someone elected to this office?

provide for public safety, maintain public infrastructure.
Police, Fire, Plow the roads.

What was the last song that got stuck in your head?

the Oscar Meyer bologna jingle

What is something that has been a struggle in your life?

aggressive drivers LOL

A mayor is a leader in his or her city. What does that mean to you?

a leader can function without bein overtly visible. Grandstanding is self serving. Be there when you are needed, be invisible when you are not

If the mayor in your city is a member of the city council and there's a city manager appointed to handle the day-to-day administration of the city government, what do you believe should be the mayor's top priority in office?

Guiding discussion and setting of policy and assisting the Administrator in executing on that policy. Supporting Department heads where needed.

What do you love most about your city?

The rural setting with great schools and proximity to the metropolitan area for entertainment and services.

What do you perceive to be your city's greatest challenges over the next decade?

pressures to develop at higher densities. loss of local controls and decision making

What do you believe is the ideal relationship between your city and the state government?

We should be able to support each other on overlapping responsibilities like environment and transportation.

What do you believe is the ideal relationship between your city and the federal government?

there is very little overlap with the Federal government. The City should stay in its own lane.

Tell us your favorite joke.

What's brown and sticky?

a stick

What do you believe is the ideal relationship between the mayor's office and law enforcement?

crucial. having our own Public Safety Department is a vital component of the service we provide to our citizens. Our City is ranked as the 3rd safest city in Minnesota for that specific reason.

What organizations or individuals have endorsed your campaign?

the Outgoing Mayor

What are your views on financial transparency and government accountability?

Financial records and budgets need to be presented in a manner that can be easily understood. Decisions on expenditures must be made in the public forum not behind closed doors

Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.

See also

2024 Elections

What's on the ballot? U.S. President U.S. Congress U.S. Congress special elections State executives State legislatures State courts Ballot measures Municipal government School boards Election analysis hub

Government

Who represents me? U.S. Congress State executives State legislators State courts Ballot measures Municipal government School boards

Newsletters

The Daily Brew The Weekly Brew The Ballot Bulletin Checks and Balances Economy and Society Hall Pass Number of the Day Robe & Gavel

External links

Search Google News for this topic