Five candidates seeking to become East Cleveland’s mayor are vying in the Sept. 9 primary. The two top finishers will run for mayor in the general election on Nov. 4.

The candidates: Juanita Gowdy; former acting Mayor Sandra Morgan; Vidah Aminah Saeed; the current mayor, Lateek R. Shabazz; and Sean L. Ward. Only Morgan, Shabazz and Ward took part in endorsement interviews. Morgan and Shabazz were interviewed jointly; Ward was interviewed separately when, as a result of an oversight, he wasn’t contacted with the others for the interview. The remaining two candidates did not respond to email and phone attempts to reach them.

East Cleveland faces pressing challenges, making this year’s mayoral election all the more important. The city’s population peaked at 40,047 in 1950. It’s now 13,792,

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