Mayor Friedman Lays Out Plan for Next Term

Lexington’s mayor, fresh off an unopposed election victory, explains his vision.

Ahead of his eventual reelection, Lexington’s Mayor Frank Friedman sat down with The Spectator to discuss his record during eight years as mayor, his ideas for his next four years leading the city, and his governing philosophy in general. 

Friedman noted that despite “having been mayor for eight years,” the “wheels of government turn very slowly.” Friedman defended his record, saying that “there are a lot of things we’ve accomplished … most of it in the private sector, which is my preference as opposed to the government.”

This private sector-focused vision matches Friedman’s background in banking and investments. He currently serves as the vice president and financial advisor at CornerStone Bank, which is headquartered in downtown Lexington. 

Friedman framed his idea of success in local government, which focuses on providing basic services. One can see, “We’re doing our job, especially when you flush the toilet and it goes down, we turn on the faucet and the water comes on, and everybody’s safe with people in blue,” he said.

Friedman stressed that he does not “take … for granted” his unopposed election victory and was actively campaigning and reaching out to voters. 

Friedman, whose interview with The Spectator took place prior to Election Day, looked forward to working with the newly elected members of Lexington’s City Council. Council members Straughn and Alexander were reelected, with John Driscoll beating Madeleine Robinson for the council’s vacancy. 

“My ambition ever since I became mayor was to facilitate the council speaking with one voice, not always agreeing on everything but at least working collaboratively, understanding each other’s perspective,” Friedman said.

He added that whether a vote was “a 4-2 or a 3-3,” when “the vote has been settled … we all get behind what that decision is and move forward.” Friedman is only empowered to cast tie-breaking votes in Lexington City Council meetings.

Friedman credited his conciliatory governing strategy to his growing up in the Presbyterian church: when church elders disagreed on an issue, those on the losing end of the vote were not “cantankerous” and moved on.

He also cited the practical necessity of unity for effective city governance. “When we give our city manager and staff direction it needs to be really clear,” he said. As an example, Friedman noted that in zoning and real estate development dissenting voices could simply result in inaction.

“One of the things that I feel like the government does so frequently is they have a solution and go looking for a problem and that generally isn’t a good way to operate,” Friedman said. Instead, he argued that the government should focus on “identifying the problem, evaluating the options, and then finding solutions.”

Friedman later discussed the political gap between Lexington and much of the wider region, predicting that Lexington would be the “blue dot in the red sea.” 

In the recent presidential election, Vice President Kamala Harris received 65 percent of the vote in Lexington City to former President Trump’s 36 percent. In Rockbridge County and Buena Vista, former President Trump prevailed by a margin of 34 and 44 percent, respectively. 

“I tease my friend and our representative Ben Cline,” the Republican representing Virginia’s Sixth Congressional District, that “when he was in the state House [of Delegates], that he could have lost Lexington when he was unopposed,” noting that Lexington has “a lot of Democrats that are going to vote Democrat.”

Friedman, who serves as a political Independent like all other Lexington city officials, said that he would “love to see most of our candidates run less party affiliated,” with Friedman hoping they would instead run more “principal affiliated.” 

Friedman discussed the candidacy of Ken Mitchell, who eventually failed to unseat the incumbent Cline by a margin of 28 percent. Friedman noted Mitchell’s status as a former Republican, who was running a campaign more to the center, “as opposed to right, right, right that Ben is,” but noted the unlikelihood of Mitchell succeeding. 

Friedman noted his willingness to work with both sides of the aisle, though, something he found was lacking in the previous Lexington city administration. “As mayor, my predecessor … had a circumstance where we were switching to our water meters being read electronically,” he began, continuing, “we’re close enough to Green Bank that we had to have permission … [to] not screw them up.”

Installing the water meters required an act of Congress to bypass the National Radio Quiet Zone. Lexington’s former mayor, though an Independent, nonetheless declared she would not contact Republican Bob Goodlatte, who then represented Lexington in Congress. 

“My retort in our public meeting was ‘He’s our Representative and the conduit for us to get what we need. You have to call him,’” Friedman said. Yet, Lexington’s former mayor, Mimi Milner Elrod, who served as the associate director of special programs at Washington and Lee and is the widow of the late John Elrod, refused. “That to me just blew my mind … that it was a non-starter,” Friedman said. 

“No matter who gets elected, as citizens, we need to engage with them and work towards the solutions for our community,” he said. Friedman wished that Representative Cline would change his campaign slogan to “Working with People” rather than “Fighting for Everybody.”

Friedman takes this conciliatory approach to heart, especially in a region that was “born fighting,” a reference Friedman made to the book of the same name by former Senator Jim Webb. This philosophy stands to guide Friedman as he approaches his next four years in office.