St. Louis Mayoral candidate Lewis Reed is accusing Mayor Francis Slay of campaigning at the expense of taxpayers.
Reed, President of the Board of Aldermen, alleges Slay is holding meetings with city employees to campaign for votes while they are on the clock. Glenn Burleigh, Reed’s campaign manager, claims it’s a coordinated effort aimed at multiple departments.
“Telling folks on taxpayer dime: that’s what’s important here," Burleigh said. "These are trash collectors, that instead of picking up trash, were listening to the mayor.”
Slay’s office responded that he’s not campaigning, he’s just meeting with employees which is part of his job that he's done for years.
“The mayor has met with city employees and employee groups for the past 12 years," Jeff Rainford, Slay’s Chief of Staff said. "Now I do get why Lewis Reed doesn’t know that, since he doesn’t know about anything else in City Hall since he’s never here.”
Reed is hoping to unseat Slay in the Democratic primary in March. Democrat Jimmie Matthews is also on the ballot.
Follow Chris McDaniel on Twitter: @csmcdaniel
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