by Martrae » Fri Apr 01, 2005 10:49 pm
CINCINNATI - A former member of the 98 Degrees rock band wants to be the next mayor of Cincinnati.
Justin Jeffre, 32, planned to announce his candidacy for Cincinnati mayor at a new conference Friday.
The Cincinnati native has been discussing his mayoral ambitions for some time and wants cable TV's VH-1 to follow his campaign for a new reality series.
"A lot of people question whether I'm serious," Jeffre said Thursday. "I am serious about this, and I intend to win."
Jeffre, said his love for his hometown and a desire to make it better motivated his decision to run for mayor.
He said he wants to bring people from all over the city together through Cincinnati's arts and entertainment venues and build a strong downtown.
"We need to sell this city back to the people of this city," Jeffre said. "We've forgotten how great this city can be."
Jeffre, who said he doesn't consider himself a politician, does not plan any commercials.
"I intend to have the most fun, innovative grass-roots campaign possible," said Jeffre.
Former bandmate and Cincinnati native Nick Lachey planned to attend the news conference and a campaign kickoff event.
Lachey, star of the MTV reality series "Newlyweds," said in a magazine interview last year that he'd love to run for mayor of Cincinnati. Both men are graduates of the School for Creative and Performing Arts in Cincinnati.
If VH-1 does produce Jeffre's proposed reality series, he said he hoped it would be called "Queen City Comeback. How Cincinnati Got Her Groove Back."
VH-1 officials say they have made no decision on Jeffre's proposal.