Biography of Shreveport Mayor

Cedric B. Glover

Cedric Bradford Glover accepted the call to serve at an early age. The youngest son of Elizabeth Bradford Glover and the late Clarence Ernest Glover Sr., Cedric credits his parents with teaching him the value of community involvement and civic commitment. And he’s put those lessons learned to good use during his distinguished career in politics.

In November 2010, Shreveport citizens overwhelmingly returned him to the Mayor’s Office, propelling him to a resounding victory by casting 65 percent of the votes in his favor.

That momentum carried over to 2011 as Mayor Glover rode a wave of popularity and credibility to lead a campaign that resulted in the April passage of a $175 million bond proposal, the largest in the City’s history. Mayor Glover overcame organized opposition to the bond issue by crafting a fact-based message that resonated with voters in every corner of this city of more than 200,000 residents.

Mayor Glover has enormous visibility as a speaker and lecturer at the local, state and national levels. He is frequently asked to appear at events ranging from family reunions to national mayoral conferences. In June 2011, he went to Washington, D.C., to address a group seeking to learn how to effectively integrate arts-related and cultural projects with private businesses in order to stimulate economic development. The planned ``Shreveport Common’’ project is being hailed as a model for other cities to follow and Mayor Glover’s vision has been the catalyst for this dynamic venture.

Indeed, Mayor Glover’s innate ability to visualize the possible is the driving force behind Shreveport’s emergence as one of the best places in America to make movies. Under his leadership, Shreveport has morphed into a primary option for filmmakers whose energy, passion and love for Shreveport has thrust the City into a position to acquire the affectionate moniker of ``Hollywood South.’’ That title was validated even more in March 2013 when the blockbuster production ``Olympus Has Fallen’’ opened in theaters nationwide. The $70 million movie was largely filmed in Shreveport and earned the city rave reviews from its all-star cast that included Gerard Butler, Morgan Freeman and Angela Bassett.

Shreveport also hosted its first ``LA Film Prize’’ Festival in 2012, an event that encouraged independent filmmakers to produce short films on location in Northwest Louisiana. The winner of the competition was guaranteed a record $50,000 and an invitation to return in subsequent years. That weekend event provided an economic benefit for the City estimated at more than $3 million.

Indeed, Shreveport is still becoming a city defined, as Mayor Glover puts it, by the number of ``good lists we find ourselves on.’’ Those lists include:

·         Best Mid-size City for Jobs (Forbes)

·         Best Places for Business & Careers (Forbes)

·         Best Place for a working Retirement (Forbes)

·         Best Real Estate Market (Forbes)

Mayor Glover’s enlightened thinking and visionary leadership has also made Shreveport one of the safest cities in the South, thanks in part to his Operation T. B. O. N. E. This nationally-recognized program links Property Standards teams with Neighborhood Associations and City Council members in a unique partnership to make neighborhoods safer.

The impact has been nothing but positive as the fight to reduce blight in the City has played a significant role in reducing the overall crime rate to a 36-year low in 2012. These remarkable results are a hallmark of Mayor Glover’s commitment to make Shreveport safe to live, work and play. It also is helping reshape the perception of where Shreveport ranks on such dubious lists as ``unsafe cities.’’ The City reported a record low homicide rate of 20 in 2011 and 2012, both well below the national average.

The Mayor’s passion to serve developed early in his life. As a youth, he started the only black Boy Scout Troop in the NORWELA Council area. He later served with the Volunteers of America Lighthouse program as a Program Coordinator. During this time, he was elected Treasurer of the Shreveport Chapter of the NAACP, and President of the Martin Luther King Jr. Civic Club.

A natural leader, he heeded the persistent calls from those urging him to run for public office. In November of 1990, Glover became the youngest person elected to the Shreveport City Council. While on the City Council, he served terms as Council Chairman, Chairman of the Public Safety Committee, and was selected as Public Official of the Year by the Shreveport Chapter of the National Association of Social Workers. He also received the Louisiana Municipal Association's Community Achievement Award three times.

As Councilman, Glover secured more than $30 million to fund capital construction projects for his district, and increased the Parks and Recreation budget by 30 percent and declared war on liquor stores selling to minors, resulting in the first liquor license revocations in the City's history. He also championed and advanced the concept of Community Oriented Policing, at a time when most in law enforcement saw little value in it.

In October of 1995, Glover was elected to the Louisiana House of Representatives. He was elected to the Executive Committee of the Louisiana Legislative Black Caucus and was later selected as Legislator of the Year by the Rural Caucus, and selected as Legislator of the Month by the Louisiana Municipal Association, Citizens Against Crime Inc. for instituting the first computer-automated crime victim notification system in the state of Louisiana.

On Nov. 7, 2006, Cedric B. Glover made history as Shreveport’s first African-American Mayor. He and his First Lady, Veronica S. Glover, consider it an honor to serve as Mayor and strive daily to make Shreveport, ‘’the next great city of the South!”

Find Out More About the City of Shreveport at: www.shreveportla.gov