Eric Mays is a local politician who is currently serving on the Flint City Council in Michigan, USA. He first joined the council in 2013 and has since been repeatedly re-elected. As a long-serving councilman, Mays has made a lasting impression on the neighbourhood and been a key player in local politics.
Mays’ political career has been marked by controversy, fervent support, and an unwavering dedication to his constituents. His career has been a wild journey of successes and setbacks, ranging from tight election victories to failed mayoral aspirations.
Eric Mays’ Biography
Eric Mays was born on September 16, 1958, in Flint, situated in the U.S. state of Michigan. He was raised in a middle-class, Christian home. He graduated from the University of Michigan with a postgraduate degree. He experienced his formative years during the 1960s in the U.S.
Despite the paucity of information available about his parents and siblings, he is married to Megan Ritchie. Mays has maintained his privacy in spite of his reputation as a contentious person. We don’t yet know if the councilman from Flint is a parent.
Eric Mays’ Career
Mays has been well-known for his decades-long involvement in Flint City politics. He was elected to the Flint City Council in 2013 after defeating rival Anita Brown by a mere eight votes in the contest. He spent four years in that capacity.
Mays attempted to run for mayor of Flint City in 2015, but she was not successful and lost the race. In addition, he lost to Anita Brown by 500 votes in the same election year, most likely for a different political post.
In 2013, following a close election in which he defeated Anita Brown by a mere eight votes, Mays was able to acquire a seat on the City Council. He spent four years in that capacity. In 2015, he faced off against Anita Brown once more, but this time, she prevailed with a relatively comfortable advantage of 500 votes.
In addition to serving on the City Council, Mays made the decision to run for Flint City mayor in 2015. Sadly, he lost that election because bad luck was not on his side. Nevertheless, Mays won a victorious election in 2021 and returned to the City Council. But, his tenure as council president was brief—he was fired from the role in less than a month. Throughout his time on the council, disagreements with Mayor Sheldon Neeley and other council members appeared to be a common occurrence.
Eric Mays’ Controversy
During a public gathering, he inappropriately compared Adolf Hitler to the council chairman and offered the Nazi salute. The Flint City Council decided to remove him from his roles as vice president of the council and chair of the finance committee.
He also reportedly got into a violent argument at a Flint pub with the deputy chief of staff of Mayor Sheldon Neeley. Mays stated that the deputy chief started the fight by yelling obscenities at him and hitting him, which knocked him to the ground. The Michigan State Police looked into the event.
Mays was found guilty of acting incoherently. Having run out of money to pay for his legal defence and establish his innocence, he resorted to crowdsourcing. By use of a GoFundMe effort, he successfully garnered more than $13,000 from supporters across.
In addition, he was mandated to pay $35,000 in city legal fees in 2021 because of a federal case he had brought against Sheldon Neeley, the mayor, and other City Hall officials. In the end, the lawsuit was unsuccessful, and Mays was left with financial obligations. One year after being ousted as City Council President during a meeting, on Tuesday, April 25, 2023, Mays was sentenced to six months of probation.
