Mike Purzycki - From NFL Player to Wilmington, DE Mayor

Elected Officials of America: Underdog Stories

Mike Purzycki survived a crowded Democratic primary and ousted the incumbent in September 2016. Hear his thoughts on Wilmington 11 months after his inauguration, a personal story about Wellington Mara, what he would do to help education in Delaware, and more.

2:00 - Can you talk about your upbringing in Newark, NJ?

6:30 - Mike reflects on his time with the NY Giants.

9:30 - What was your NFL salary?

10:30 - What prompted your first foray into politics?

12:00 - What made you think about running for Mayor?

15:00 - What kind of resistance did you get about running for Mayor?

16:15 - Why did people think you had no chance?

18:30 - What was the darkest time of the campaign?

19:50 - Can you talk about Eugene working in the cabinet?

21:00 - How has it been going as Mayor for 11 months?

23:30 - Can you talk about walking on the racial sensitivity tight-rope?

28:50 - Do you think the problems of Wilmington are too big for any one Mayor to fix?

33:00 - How would you fix Delaware’s educational system?

35:30 - How can we get City Council to function again?

38:30 - What has been hard to get done?

41:50 - What can we do as a country to come together again?

44:30 - What is the best advice you’ve ever received?