Brandon Scott: Baltimore’s Youngest Mayor Makes History

Brandon Scott never planned to make history, he just wanted to make a difference. Now, as Baltimore’s 52nd mayor and the youngest to hold the office in over a century, Scott has done both.

In November 2024, Scott secured re-election, becoming the city’s first two-term mayor in twenty years, a feat that underscores the confidence Baltimoreans have in his leadership, especially as he steers the city through some of its toughest challenges.

Scott’s journey is a local story. Growing up in the Park Heights neighbourhood, he saw up close how gun violence and disinvestment tore at the fabric of Baltimore’s communities.

Those experiences shaped his priorities from the start: safer streets, more opportunities for youth, and rebuilding trust in local government.

He began his public service as one of the city council’s youngest-ever members, later rising to City Council President before taking the city’s top job in 2020. From the start, he set out to prove that big, entrenched problems could be met with bold ideas—and real action.

One of Scott’s signature achievements is Baltimore’s historic drop in homicides and shootings. In 2023, the city recorded a 20% reduction in homicides—a number that’s kept falling. As of December 2024, the city was down another 25% in homicides and nearly 34% in nonfatal shootings compared to the previous year. It’s a turnaround the city hasn’t seen in decades.

At the heart of this progress is Scott’s Comprehensive Violence Prevention Plan. For the first time, Baltimore began treating violence as a public health crisis—expanding services for victims and their families, supporting people reentering society from incarceration, and launching neighborhood-focused interventions in areas hit hardest by trauma.

Community partnerships matter here. More than 50 grassroots groups, like Challenge2Change and the PEACE Team, have received $16 million in contracts to prevent violence. Six “Safe Streets” sites, including Park Heights and Franklin Square, celebrated a year without a single homicide—a milestone that was once unthinkable.

Scott’s work hasn’t stopped at public safety. He’s funneled record investment into Baltimore’s schools and recreation centers, with 11 new or renovated schools opening during his first term, including historic institutions like Baltimore Polytechnic Institute.

The city also dedicated $100 million to long-stalled housing projects in overlooked neighborhoods.

For the 2025 fiscal year, city schools received a record $477 million budget—nearly 48% more than just three years ago—serving 75,000 students across Baltimore.

What sets Brandon Scott apart isn’t just policy. It’s his deep roots and commitment to community. He still lives in Northeast Baltimore, and he often posts updates and words of encouragement to his nearly 60,000 Instagram followers, sharing both progress and unfinished business.

“Our continued progress is the direct result of a comprehensive, evidence-based public safety strategy that we’ve implemented in partnership with residents,” he wrote recently, quick to credit the collective effort.

But Brandon Scott is also clear-eyed about what’s left to do. “Sixty-eight lives lost to violence is 68 too many,” he wrote in a recent update. “While we acknowledge the historic lows, we must also acknowledge there is much more work to do, and our success makes me commit even further to doing it.”

Scott’s results have drawn attention from Washington to the White House, where he regularly consults on gun violence prevention. He co-chairs the Mayors Against Illegal Guns coalition and holds leadership roles with the African American Mayors Association and the National League of Cities.

But Baltimore remains at the center of his mission. “I am Baltimore,” Scott says, and it’s not just a campaign slogan. It’s his reality—he’s an alumnus of MERVO High and St. Mary’s College of Maryland, a husband and father of three, and a tireless champion for the city he’s always called home.