Yousef Ravi announces bid for Ann Arbor mayor, centers on housing affordability and public control of land

Yousef Ravi announced his candidacy for mayor of Ann Arbor, saying he wants to address what he described as growing unaffordability and a mismatch between taxes paid and city services delivered. "My name is Yousef Ravi, and I'm a candidate for mayor of Ann Arbor," he said, identifying himself as a lifelong resident and graduate of Ann Arbor Public Schools and the University of Michigan.

Ravi framed his campaign around affordability and local control. He said Ann Arbor has become "completely unaffordable for working class, middle class, and seniors," citing high taxes and rents alongside what he called a pattern of large tax breaks for developers. He said the city recently approved what he described as a "$350,000,000 tax giveaway" to developers and warned that such deals reduce revenue for schools, community college, roads and affordable housing. That figure and his characterization of the deals were presented as his campaign claim.

Ravi highlighted his public‑service record, saying he has served the community for 16 years, beginning on the Washtenaw County Board of Commissioners in 2011 and serving as chair. He said he later served six years in the Michigan House, including four years as Democratic floor leader, and returned to the county commission after term limits. He credited his time in local government with achievements he described as including passage of a balanced four‑year county budget and securing a bond rating for county government; he also cited starting a county dental clinic and a municipal ID program. Those accomplishments were presented as Ravi's account of his tenure.

On policy, Ravi said his legislative work included ending taxation on solar panels, noting that "Ann Arbor was the only city in the entire state that was taxing solar panels," and pushing bills on criminal justice reform and environmental cleanup standards.

Ravi criticized what he called a trend toward privatizing city services, saying "public work should be done by public workers" and arguing that public land "should be used for public purposes, not private profit." He called for a shift away from consultant‑driven management and toward giving residents and frontline workers a greater voice in city decisions.

He closed with a grassroots appeal for volunteers and donations and urged supporters to "please vote for me on or before August 4." He listed his campaign website as voteyusef.com.

The campaign announcement lays out Ravi's priorities for a mayoral bid—housing affordability, opposition to large developer incentives, local control of public land and services, and greater resident participation—while attributing policy claims and budget figures to Ravi's remarks. The campaign did not present documentation for the $350 million figure or the broader fiscal impacts he described during this speech; those claims remain assertions from the candidate.