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Green Party of Ohio /
Elections & Candidates / 2007
Candidates:
Candidate Pages:
| David Ball |Justin
Jeffre |
Justin Jeffre for Cincinnati City Council
After attending St. Vivian's elementary school until
the fifth grade, Justin Jeffre found his passion in high school.
"At SCPA I honed my skills in the arts and landed professional
singing jobs at King's Island and other places," said Jeffre.
Having worked as a busboy, a dishwasher, and briefly as a valet,
Jeffre soon found that his true talent was for entertainment. While
attending the University of Cincinnati -- where he studied History
and Political Science, subjects he remains passionate about to this
day -- he sang in the band The Avenues with his high school friend
Nick Lachey.
"At this point, we decided to pursue our vision
of taking our love for music all the way to the big leagues and
the world stage," said Jeffre. After struggling in LA for a
year, the newly formed group 98 Degrees was signed to Motown records
-- making them only the second white group to be signed in the history
of the legendary label.
The Grammy-nominated group sold over 9 million copies
of their albums worldwide and worked with legends like Stevie Wonder
and Mariah Carey. Since the group has been on a self-imposed hiatus,
Jeffre has returned to Cincinnati and started getting more involved
in his community. He worked on a campaign to bring light rail to
the region, ran for mayor in 2005, and has recently been campaigning
for election and media reform. "Campaign finance reform is
too important to be left to politicians,"Jeffre frequently
proclaims. "The digital revolution allows us to participate
in the political process in ways previous generations could only
have dreamed."
Locally, Jeffre is becoming more known for his work
in the media reform movement, where he can often be found on the
other side of the camera at civic and political events. Together
with fellow activist Jason Haap (aka "The Dean of Cincinnati")
and citizen watchdog and council candidate Michael Earl Patton,
Jeffre launched a grassroots multi-media project called the Cincinnati
Beacon, which now includes a monthly print paper. The Beacon features
video interviews with local politicians, investigative reporting,
labor news and alternative views of what's happening around the
city. Through the Beacon, Jeffre has helped to re-invent advocacy
journalism for the 21st century.
Jeffre also played a large role in organizing the
NAACP's broad coalition to put the jail tax on the ballot, giving
Hamilton County voters a voice and a choice in a major economic
decision affecting their lives. "I believe that leadership
is about having a bold vision, empowering others, and working together
to build consensus around our common goals and visions for the future,"
said Jeffre. A visionary with global perspective and a keen understanding
of local issues, Jeffre believes he can help navigate this old "Queen
City" river town into a competitive position in both the national
and international markets. "Cincinnati can and shall be a world-class
destination location once again."
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