FIFTH TIME’S THE CHARM
A write-in campaign for office is notoriously difficult. Unless your name is Bryan Barnett, four-term mayor of Rochester Hills. The Oakland County burb has a charter amendment which stipulates that mayors and city council members are term-limited after two terms but that does not prevent anyone from seeking added terms as a write-in candidate. Barnett was on the ballot in 2007 and 2011 and then ran write-in campaigns in 2015 and 2019, plus again this year. His challenger is Rochester Hills political science graduate Ariane Paviani, who is concerned about the amount of development in the city. Barnett has advocated for commercial and residential development in his 17 years at the helm of the city, helping to transform the community from a sleepy area to a tech hub, along with parks, trails and infrastructure. During Barnett’s term, Rochester Hills has been named one of the top 10 places in the U.S. to live.Â