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BRUNSWICK, Ohio --- Brunswick voters Nov. 4 will choose between two candidates for mayor, incumbent Ron Falconi and challenger, Christopher Farrenholz. Farrenholz Brunswick native Farrenholz, 44, is a 1999 Brunswick High School (BHS) graduate and 2024 BHS Distinguished Graduate Hall of Fame inductee. He graduate from Capital University in 2003 and earned his a master’s degree in International Politics from Edinburgh University in Scotland, before enlisting in the U.S. Army and being deployed as part of Operation Iraqi Freedom as a commissioned a field artillery officer. Farrenholz said over the course of two combat deployments he served in Baghdad, Karbala, Tal A’far and Ramadi as an information operations officer and combat logistics patrol commander. His military career also included deployments to Russia, Korea, Germany, the Dominican Republic, Scotland, Kuwait, Qatar and Antarctica before his retirement as a lieutenant colonel. Farranholz continues to serve in the U.S. Army Reserve and is employed by the Department of Veterans Affairs at the Cleveland Regional Office. “My mother and grandmother are both retired from Brunswick Public Schools. My parents, grandparents, siblings, cousins, are still based in Brunswick and surrounding areas,” Farrenholz said. “About six years ago, I purchased my own home in Brunswick and have lived there full-time ever since. While I consider myself privileged to have friends all over the world, many of my nearest and dearest friends still live and work in this community.” Farrenholz said his decision to run for mayor came largely from the outside. “Quite simply, I was asked to run for mayor by folks in the community,” he said. “When I realized the extent of the current mayor’s tenure had gone entirely unchallenged, it seemed undemocratic. [Falconi] has been mayor for over a decade, solely due to his campaigns for other offices having failed, and no one [is] stepping up to oppose him in his current role. I believe Brunswick deserves a choice, and some fresh perspective.” Farrenholz said he gained mayoral experience during his time overseas, acting as Mayor of Subakswer and Al Sha’ab. “[These are] two suburbs of Baghdad with over 275,000 residents,” Farrenholz said. “Moreover, I’ve always felt called to public service. Bringing my leadership and experience in local government to my own hometown feels like a natural next step.” He said the some of the main issues facing the city at this time are finding a way to work with “the kind of investors and businesses that we want to attract” in order to fill available commercial space and “simultaneously maximize green space to keep our community beautiful,” as well as a need to focus on street maintenance and “maximize Cleveland Water main renewal program, get our streets in order in addition to building general infrastructure.” “Also, working to bolster our image among neighbors and draw further investment in our community,” Farrenholz added. He said he feels his background as a military logistics officer and information officer gives him “A breadth of knowledge that can easily be maximized in the role of mayor.” “I see the role of mayor as the public face of the city; the liaison between our community and the rest of the world,” Farrenholz said. “In the city council/city manager form of government … the role of the mayor is stay in touch with community and its needs and desires and be their overall voice within the city.” Farrenholz said he feels his diverse range of experience, military training and leadership and “talent for leading from the front and bringing diverse ranges of people and ideas together” make him the best candidate for mayor. “My entire adult life has been in the service of others and this is the best opportunity to share my knowledge and experience in a new role with the city that molded me into the man I have become,” he said. Falconi Falconi, 56, was born and raised in the Cleveland area, attended Padua Franciscan High School in Parma and received his bachelor’s degree from John Carroll University, majoring in political science with a concentration in international Studies. He received his law degree from the University of Akron and has practiced law in Ohio for nearly three decades, including representing clients before the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service and practicing law before the U.S. Immigration Court. “I started out as a law clerk for a county prosecutor’s office,” Falconi said. “After I passed the bar, I was promoted to assistant prosecuting attorney. [From there] I worked for a private law firm in Pennsylvania, then opened my own practice in Ohio in 2000. Most of my cases are family law and divorce, immigration, and criminal defense.” Falconi’s first foray into politics came in 2008 when he was appointed to a vacant city council at large seat. He won his first contested city-wide election in 2009 and served on council committees including economic development, planning and zoning, safety, finance, and building and building code. In 2016 and 2020 Falconi served as a member of the Asian Pacific American Advisory Committee to the Donald Trump presidential campaigns, and was asked to speak at the White House in 2018. Falconi and his wife, Genevive, have been married 25 years, have two adult children and have lived in Brunswick since 2001. He said his decision to pursue the role of mayor came after five years on city council. “I wanted to serve the people of Brunswick in a different way,” Falconi said. “Even though I would be giving up my vote on council, I would be running the Brunswick Mayor’s Court. This is the best -and my favorite part of the job.” He added that he considers “running an effective mayor’s court” to be his greatest accomplishment as mayor. “It perfectly complements my legal background as a practicing attorney and a former assistant prosecutor,” Falconi said. “Since taking charge of the court, I have overseen tens of thousands of different charges involving nearly 6,000 defendants, ensuring that justice is served and our city remains safe.” Falconi said the city is facing many important issues, with safety been the most important. He said he feels his background “uniquely qualifies me to address this issue.” “I take great pride that we live in a safe community,” he said. “I was a former member of the safety committee when I served on council and dealt with issues pertaining to our police and fire. Currently, I run mayor’s court where I must balance the rights of the criminal and traffic defendants with the safety of the people of Brunswick. My combined experience in law and city government provides the ideal foundation to continue being a leader in Brunswick.” Falconi said he sees the role of mayor in Brunswick as being a “representative of the voters.” “I do not see myself as city hall’s representative to the people, I see myself as the people’s representative to city hall,” he said. “I believe I am the best candidate for mayor because of my extensive experience and proven dedication to public service. I have served over 20 years in municipal government. “As a city councilman, I helped craft important local laws and as an attorney with nearly 30 years of legal experience I bring a deep understanding of how policy and law work together to serve Brunswick effectively. I also have represented the city in various local, national, and international venues. This, in and of itself, has been the honor of a lifetime.”
