Kenneth V. Cockrel, Jr has served on the Detroit City Council since 1998. A former journalist, Wayne County Commissioner and community activist, Councilman Cockrel made history as the youngest person ever elected to this body in 1997. He was reelected in 2001 and was elevated to the position of President Pro Tem. Cockrel was elected to his third term in November 2005 and elevated to the position of President after receiving more votes than any other City Council candidate.
As an elected official, President Cockrel has written and passed key legislation to improve the quality of life in Wayne County and in the City of Detroit. As a County Commissioner, he strengthened the Wayne County Residency Ordinance and passed an ordinance to prevent overcrowding and early releases from Wayne County jails. As a Detroit City Councilmember, the President passed ordinances to prevent the over-concentration of liquor stores, pawn shops, and other disruptive businesses in residential neighborhoods; enacted laws placing stiffer regulations on group homes and adult foster care facilities; and authored ordinances which mandate the prompt payment of all city contractors. During the 2004 budget deliberations, President Cockrel insured that the Detroit Police Department would continue to receive funding for its Explorers Program, which trains young people in law enforcement by allowing them to work side-by-side with Detroit police officers on community projects.
In 2006, President Cockrel passed an ordinance designated the areas around public libraries, schools, parks, recreation centers, and public pools as drug free zones. The ordinance stiffens the penalties for those who are found to be trafficking illegal narcotics in these areas. President Cockrel is also currently working ordinances which target those who post illegal signs on city property and the owners of abandoned, dangerous buildings. During this year Cockrel also launched the Friendly Neighbor Program, a pilot project being done in partnership with Faith Community Homebuyers. The program seeks to place city-owned homes in need of in repair into the hands of residents who want first-time homes. In 2007, Cockrel passed an ordinance which prohibits Detroit Police officers and other city employees from racial profiling. That same year Cockrel launched the Detroit City Council Green Task Force which educates the Detroit Community on green principles and encourage the implementation of green practices in new construction, existing buildings, neighborhood communities, and government operations.
Council President Cockrel serves on the Detroit Elections Commission, the Detroit Employee Benefit Plan Board, and on the board of directors for the Detroit Transportation Corporation. He is also one of Detroit’s delegates to the Southeastern Michigan Council of Governments (SEMCOG) and a Board Trustee to the Michigan Municipal League.
President Cockrel. is the son of the late attorney, community activist, and former Detroit City Councilman, Kenneth V. Cockrel and Carol Cockrel, a former Detroit Public Schools teacher. He is a native Detroiter with a strong commitment to the people of the City of Detroit. The President meets weekly with community groups and regularly holds town meetings on issues ranging from drug trafficking and illegal dumping to entrepreneurship and economic development. Each year, the President gives away more than 500 turkeys to senior citizens and needy families through his Annual Thanksgiving Turkey Give-Away.
A cum laude graduate of Wayne State University with a Bachelor of Arts in print journalism, President Cockrel is a former reporter for the Detroit Free Press, the Grand Rapids Press and the Cincinnati Inquirer. He is a graduate of the inaugural class of the Michigan Political Leadership Program at Michigan State University as well as the Program for State and Local Government Officials at Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government.
President Cockrel and his wife Kimberly, have two sons, Kenneth III and Kyle Vincent as well as three daughters Kennedy Victoria, Kendal Imani, and Kayla Lanette.