Troy City Council 2023 Election: 7 Candidates Face Off For 3 Seats

TROY, MI — Seven candidates are running for three open seats on the Troy City Council in November's municipal elections. The top three vote-getters will be elected to a four-year term.

Candidates running for the seats include incumbent Theresa Brooks, Hirak Chanda, incumbent Ann Erickson Gault, Mark Gunn, Edward Kempen, Dale Murrish and Edward Ross.

Troy voters can vote in person at their local precinct anytime from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 7. Any absentee ballots must have been requested by Nov. 3 by mail and by Nov. 6 in person.

Absentee early voting began on Sept. 28 and ends Nov. 6. All absentee ballots must be returned by Nov. 7 at 8 p.m. You can submit them by mail, or by hand-delivering the ballot to your clerk’s office or their drop box.

Here is a little about each candidate:

Theresa Brooks

Brooks has lived in Troy for the past 15 years. Some of her top priorities include supporting public safety, continue expanding recreational programs and other amenities, holding developers to high standards when reviewing proposed new developments and keeping a balanced budget, according to her campaign website.

"Now more than ever, I am confident that Troy has a bright future ahead of it," Brooks says on her website. "That is why I am running for a second term on the City Council — to build upon the progress that my colleagues on the City Council and I have made in keeping Troy a great place to live."

Hirak Chanda

Chanda came to the United States from India 34 years ago, after graduating from IIT Kharagpur, according to his campaign website. He then attended Graduate Schools at both the University of Minnesota and University of Michigan, and worked in the Automotive Industry in Metro Detroit for more than 25 years. He is the inventor of 11 United States Utility Patents and developed several successful products in the area of Automotive Safety and Energy Efficiency. He has lived in Troy for the past 24 years.

Some of his top priorities include:

• Keeping Troy safe and secure for our families and our businesses
  
• Restoring some senior programs that existed before the pandemic
  
• Increasing Troy’s sustainability initiatives
  
• Maintaining the city’s fiscal stability
  
• Celebrating and promoting the rich cultural diversity of Troy
  

"I am running for City Council because I want Troy to remain the preferred destination of anyone who is planning to move to this region," he said on his website.

Ann Erickson Gault

Gault was first elected to City Council in 2019. Some of her top priorities include supporting public safety, continue expanding recreational programs and other amenities, holding developers to high standards when reviewing proposed new developments and keeping a balanced budget, according to her campaign website.

"For the next four years, our task as a city is to maintain the momentum we have built through hard work and integrity," she said on her website.

Mark Gunn

Gunn has lived in Troy for 37 years, according to his campaign website. He has a Bachelors and a Masters from Walsh College and currently works as an Adjunct professor. He is also a 37-year small business owner and Real Estate broker and agent for 30 years. Some of his civic work includes:

• Currently serving in the US Coast Guard Auxiliary
• Currently serving on my Home Owners Association and have for 10 years
• Member of the Shrine High School Dads club for 13 years. Have been
• Past member of the Big Brothers/Big Sisters Program
• Member of the Knights of Columbus
• Past Counselor for Crossroads. Helps homeless with counseling for job opportunities
• Candidate for City Council 2017
• Supporter for the Troy Wall civic group
• Supporter for the Troy Volunteer firefighters

Edward Kempen

Kempen has a Bachelor of Science in Industrial Engineering - University of Wisconsin Madison, MBA - Oakland University and EDS - Technical Consulting Program and has experience working for the City of Troy with the Planning Commission, Board of Zoning Appeals and Committee for Citizens with Disabilities, according to his campaign website.

Some of his top priorities include:

• Improving Troy's public parks
• Hearing residents' concerns
• Supporting small businesses in Troy
• Keeping taxes low and quality high
• Ensuring responsible development
• Supporting public safety

Dale Murrish

Murrish has lived in Troy since 1988 and is a retired engineer, according to his campaign website. Some of his education highlights include a Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering, Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana (Thesis: Finite Element Analysis of the Tibia with and without a (Knee) Prosthesis).

Some of his top priorities include:

• Sustainable development (No more five-story apartment buildings overlooking backyard swimming pools and controlling the deer overpopulation, among others.
• Fiscal restraint (Propose a 1 percent inflation-adjusted budget cut each year for five years. Possible property tax cut, or use the savings for the firefighters incentive fund).
• Keep funding for the library, parks and recreation, police and fire.
• Keep budget increases to the rate of inflation or lower.
• Support the effort to keep Troy honors programs in middle schools.

Edward Ross

Ross has lived in Troy since 2012 after graduating with a computer science degree from Wayne State University in 2009, according to his campaign website. He also spent two years in France/Monaco earning an MBA.

Some of his top priorities include:

• Increase safety and support the police department
• Support the fire department (Enhance the Firefighter Incentive Plan to maintain first-rate fire services with cost efficiency, and preserve Troy’s 75-year tradition of exceptional fire protection. Provide resources to improve recruitment and retention).
• Overhaul our emergency medical services (Secure a new ambulance contract to ensure a dedicated presence of ambulances within our city limits, utilize city-owned green spaces intelligently, catering to local needs. Develop green spaces to harmonize with their respective neighborhoods, addressing the current lack of guaranteed availability).
• Common sense green space enhancements (utilize city-owned green spaces intelligently, catering to local needs, develop green spaces to harmonize with their respective neighborhoods).