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Brian Smith (Novi City Council At-large, Michigan, candidate 2025)
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Brian Smith ran for election to the Novi City Council At-large in Michigan. He was on the ballot in the general election on November 4, 2025.
Smith completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2025. Click here to read the survey answers.
[1]Biography
Brian Smith provided the following biographical information via Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey on October 6, 2025:
- Birth date: April 18, 1959
- Birth place: Allen Park, Michigan
- High school: Riverview (MI)
- Bachelor's: General Motors Institute (now Kettering University), 1982
- Gender: Male
- Profession: Software Developer
- Prior offices held:
- Novi City Council (2021-Prsnt)
- Incumbent officeholder: Yes
- Campaign website
- Campaign Facebook
Elections
General election
General election for Novi City Council At-large (3 seats)
The following candidates ran in the general election for Novi City Council At-large on November 4, 2025.
Candidate | ||
| Joe Bertera (Nonpartisan) | ||
 | Toby D. Brazwell (Nonpartisan) | |
| Jonathan Gold (Nonpartisan) | ||
| Priya Gurumurthy (Nonpartisan) | ||
Aaron Martinez (Nonpartisan)  | ||
| Ed Roney (Nonpartisan) | ||
| Brian Smith (Nonpartisan) | ||
| ||||
| = 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. | ||||
Election results
Endorsements
Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for Smith in this election.
Campaign themes
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Brian Smith completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2025. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Smith's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.
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I’ve been a Novi resident for over 40 years. I have a BS Industrial Engineering from General Motors Institute, and currently work as a Sr Software Engineer/Technical Lead at Accurate Technologies Inc, a Novi based supplier of automotive calibration and data analysis tools.
In 2019, I participated in the Novi Ambassador Academy to learn more about how the city operates. Later that year, I applied for and was appointed to the Parks, Recreation, and Cultural Services Commission. I was elected to my first term on City Council in 2021.Dr. Jonas Salk said “The most important question to ask ourselves is ‘Are we being good ancestors?’”. That’s the question I ask myself when I make decisions on city council.
- Environmental Sustainability. We have to find ways to reduce our carbon footprint globally, and doing that starts locally. I'm the chair of Novi's new Environmental Sustainability Committee. We're working on a Sustainability Master Plan for the city, and on projects we can start right now like food waste composting, connecting residents and solar panel installers to get panels on roofs, and finding ways to connect residents to the environment. On council, I support any action we can take to preserve greenspace.
- Non-motorized and public transit. As chair of the Mobility Committee, I'm working on implementing the 2024 Active Mobility Plan that makes getting around Novi as a pedestrian or cyclist easier and safer. I'm also working with neighboring cities and other governmental agencies to improve non-motorized and public transit options in Novi
- I listen to residents. When residents come to City Council, Planning Commission, or other boards/commissions to speak during public comment, I follow up with them to learn more about the issue. The more information I have, the better I can do my job of representing our residents.
I have seen a lot of change in the last 40 years. The balance between growth and preserving greenspace is important. We also have to create the right mix of housing for young people staring careers and families, established residents, and our older adults looking to downsize to single floor living. Developers look to the end of their project - City Council has to have a longer and broader view.
My first exposure to Novi government was trying to save part of Lakeshore Park from being developed (we failed - it's now the Liberty Park subdivision). I also served on the Parks, Recreation and Cultural Services Commission. Parks, greenspace, and walking/running/cycling paths will always have my support on council.
My first exposure to Novi government was trying to save part of Lakeshore Park from being developed (we failed - it's now the Liberty Park subdivision). I also served on the Parks, Recreation and Cultural Services Commission. Parks, greenspace, and walking/running/cycling paths will always have my support on council.
We're the front line of government that impacts peoples lives daily - public safety, roads and sidewalks, sewers and drains, parks and recreation programs are all things residents use on a daily basis that city council makes decisions about.
Anyone in an elected position has to have an open mind, a willingness to listen and learn, and a 'think outside the box' approach to solving complex problems
Listening to residents and looking to the future of Novi.
I always want to leave things better than I found them
Not any specific event, just 1968 as a whole. I was 9. Walter Cronkite reporting on the Vietnam War, the assassinations of Martin Luther King and Robert Kennedy, riots at the Democratic National Convention, the Apollo missions. I think that year defined a lot of my attitudes on social justice and what government can do at it's best and worst.
I was a caddy at a country club, starting when I was 13. I had that job every summer for 4 years. It was a 7 mile bike ride each way, 6 days a week. I didn't learn to love golf, but I did learn to love cycling.
Lots of candidates, but I'd pick 'Watership Down' by Richard Adams. It's and epic adventure, and it's a reflection on human society - the 'safety' of a police state, standing up for your friends, and taking your future into your own hands
Council appoints residents to boards and commissions like the Planning Commission, Library Board, and Parks Recreation and Cultural Services Commission. We also serve on subcommittees like Environmental Sustainability, Long Term Strategic Planning, Mobility, and Ordinance Review. All of these bodies make decisions that come to council for final approval. Most people don't know they exist but they have a big impact on what the city does.
I don't think previous experience in government or politics is necessary for being on city council. Novi's Ambassador Academy is a great start for someone interested in our city - you learn what the city does and how it operates from city staff and council members. Serving on a board or commission is a great way to gain experience and is a valuable service to the city.
Having an open mind, and being able to balance competing needs - development vs greenspace, funding different programs within the budget. Being able to build coalitions and work with other members of the council.
Sierra Club, 314 Action, Laura Casey (Novi Mayor Pro Tem), Ericka Thomas (Novi City Council), Gwen Markham (Oakland County Commissioner), Kelly Breen (Michigan House), Rosemary Bayer (Michigan Senate)
Helping raise 2 children and 3 step-children to become happy and independent adults.
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
2025 Elections
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ "Email with Michigan Secretary of State," September 11, 2025
