In previous interviews with the Dayton Daily News, Kirkpatrick said his leadership experience should be an edge in the mayoral race.
Kirkpatrick, Rob Hoffman, Paul Keller and Donna Wilson, who were in the lead for Fairborn city council, waited for the election results at the Fairborn Senior Center on North 3rd Street, said Kirkpatrick who estimated more than 100 people were at the facility.
Tommy Adkins and Robert Wood ran against Kirkpatrick in a race to lead the city, with a population of more than 32,000, as mayor.
Kirkpatrick will replace Tom Nagel, the current mayor, who did not run for another term. Kirkpatrick and Wood were both elected as councilmen in 2009. Adkins, 50, does not have experience as an elected municipal official.
In previous interviews with the Dayton Daily News, Kirkpatrick and Wood who served on the city council with him, said Fairborn is not taking advantage of being the gateway to Wright-Patterson Air Force Base. Kirkpatrick, a retired Air Force colonel, said he would like to see the base be more involved in the community.
Kirkpatrick, 60, also teaches at Wright State University’s College of Nursing and Health and has said marketing downtown and bringing in businesses that cater to students will help the city be more engaged with the university.
However, Adkins, a financial advisor /insurance agent/real estate investor, has said only focusing on the base and the college is the wrong approach and more emphasis should be placed on retaining businesses in Fairborn and utilizing the city’s diverse population effectively.
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