The City of Akron has elected a new mayor. Councilman Shammas Malik will take over for current Mayor Dan Horrigan when his term ends on Dec. 31.
Malik will be sworn in at midnight on Jan. 1. There will also be a public swearing-in ceremony on Jan. 6 at the E.J. Thomas Hall at the University of Akron.
Malik was first named Akron's presumptive mayor in May during the primary election after no Republicans or Independents ran for the position.
The decision by voters to elect Malik as mayor marks several firsts for the city. He's the first person of color and the first Muslim to run the city, and at 32, he becomes the youngest Akron mayor.
When asked how that will shape how he leads, Malik said he will rely on his heritage and approach to figuring out how everybody's experience can fit into something broader.
"I'm half Irish, half Pakistani. A lot of times, I never truly fit in one community or another, and so I have always tried to fit into all of them to see how we can all fit in with our different experiences," Malik said.
Malik plans to take advice that his late mother gave him years ago as he oversees about 2,000 employees with a budget of $750 million in a city with about 187,000 people.
"The message that she gave through her life was find something you love doing and use it to give back to other people," he said.
News 5 discovered other people are also eager to give their advice. A man who did not know the mayor-elect stopped to talk to Malik in Downtown Akron on Wednesday. After Malik told him he was just elected mayor, the man told him to "do the right thing."
"Try to help people," the man said. "Absolutely," Malik responded.
Malik said he feels a responsibility to help with Akron's healing following last year's controversial deadly police-involved shooting of Jayland Walker.
"The sad reality is that a terrible incident could happen again, and so we want to do everything we can to head that off," Malik said.
Malik said violence prevention and intervention plans are programs that are priorities.
To that end, he wants to increase community policing with more neighborhood foot patrol officers. Malik said there are currently 12 officers working in that capacity.
"We want to really prioritize a plan in which every officer, especially in patrol, has time and space in their day to build that community trust," he said.
Malik is looking to fill several positions. One of his most important decisions will be naming a new police chief. Chief Steve Mylett announced he was planning to retire by the end of the year.
Malik said he would look at both internal and external candidates and wants a chief with a high degree of integrity committed to accountability, transparency and community policing.
Malik said focusing on improving education and charting a path toward a universal Pre-K program in Akron is also essential.
"We are the last major city in Ohio without a universal Pre-K program," he said.
Malik said finding solutions is also top of mind in a city facing intense scrutiny for high eviction rates.
"I think that what we have to do is start by getting people jobs that will allow them to pay for housing and then get the price of housing down," he said.
Malik said he realizes some people might feel he's too young to lead the city, but he believes he has the vision and the energy to move Akron forward.
CLICK HERE to read more about Malik's plan for Akron.
"I'm enormously humbled and honored to have this opportunity. I take it extraordinarily seriously," Malik said. "Judge me by my actions. I'm ready to roll."
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You can watch previous coverage of Malik's mayoral election below:
