WASHINGTON (TIP): Indian American Democrat and lawyer Aftab Pureval has announced his candidacy for the post of Cincinnati’s Mayor, promising to improve the lives of the people in the major US city amid the deadly coronavirus pandemic. Mr Pureval, who is the Hamilton County Clerk of Courts, confirmed his candidacy in a tweet on January 14.

“Our country is at a critical moment, and our city is too. And that’s why I’m so excited to announce my candidacy to be Cincinnati’s next mayor,” the 38-year-old Democratic Party politician tweeted.

“I’m running for mayor to bring executive experience & a record of improving government services to the table – starting with an economic COVID recovery that benefits every neighborhood in our city & a plan to restore trust in City Hall,” he said in another tweet.

According to a local media report, Aftab Pureval’s parents migrated from India in 1980 to Xenia, Ohio. He lost the race for Congress in 2018. “The truth is families are really struggling. Our city is at a critical moment and the progress of the last decade is at stake. We have to come out of the gate swinging after COVID-19 to get our economy moving again,” he was quoted as saying by the newspaper. The candidates in the fray for the post of mayor include four City Council members and a state senator, among others, it said.