Two have announced plans to run for Peoria mayor next year

Editor's note: Rita Ali was the first Black woman elected to an at-large council seat in Peoria. An earlier version of this story contained incorrect information.

Peoria Mayor Rita Ali is running for reelection and will have at least one opponent from within the Peoria City Council.

Ali announced her bid for reelection on Tuesday.

At-large city councilmember John Kelly told the Journal Star he will also be running for mayor. Kelly was elected to the City Council in 2019. He is a retired financial adviser.

Ali said she wants to "complete her assignment" and see through the city's five-year strategic plan that runs until 2029 and also hopes to see the completion of an Amtrak line from Peoria to Chicago that she has championed during her time as mayor.

"Those things, and the fact there is still work undone and the fact we're making progress, is what drives me to say 'I'm not done' and request another four years so I can complete my assignment," Ali told the Journal Star on Wednesday.

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Ali, who took over as mayor in 2021, was the first woman and first Black person to be elected mayor in the city of Peoria. She was also the first Black woman to be elected to an at-large seat on the Peoria City Council in 2019.

It was a tight election that secured Ali a mayoral victory over former city councilmember Jim Montelongo in 2021. Ali won by just 43 votes .

Ali said this time around she hopes people recognize her experience as mayor and agree with her that she is a candidate running on progress.

"Now I am running on progress, running on a record having served as mayor almost three and a half years," Ali said. "So now people have experienced me in this role, so I hope they'll agree that I've done a good job and we need to stay the course."

Ali touted in both her reelection announcement and her State of the City address the revenue increases that Peoria has seen in the last three years. Peoria has seen a 13% increase in revenues stemming from things such as hotel and restaurant taxes, personal property replacement taxes, online sales taxes and American Rescue Plan Act funds.

The next mayoral election in Peoria will be held in April 2025. If three or more candidates throw their hats in the ring, a primary election will be held in February 2025. Thus far, only Ali and Kelly have announced their candidacies.

Prospective candidates have until Oct. 28 to file.

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This article originally appeared on Journal Star: Two have announced plans to run for Peoria mayor next year