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Upper Marlboro, Tonga Turner will be resigning from office, effective June 21st. Turner says she decided to leave the role to focus on her family. However, according to NBC 4 Washington, Turner learned of”alarming incidents” potentially racist incidents in nature including “her tires being slashed and a former town commissioner doodling swastikas during a town meeting.”

Turner maintained this was a family decision saying her decision was based on “to focus more time and attention to her two small children, both under the age of 10, and her family.

Below is her resignation letter as posted on Marlborofire.com

A Special Message From Mayor Tonga Y. Turner

Dear Friends,

I am writing to inform you that effective Friday, June 21st, 2019, I will no longer be serving as Mayor & President of the Board of Commissioners for the Town of Upper Marlboro. I have thoroughly enjoyed the many relationships that have been forged over the past two years and the strong partnerships that have supported the Town in reaching new heights.

Serving the Town of Upper Marlboro has been one of the greatest experiences of my career, and it has been my distinct honor to have served alongside each of you. In a short amount of time we have been able to secure over eight hundred thousand dollars in grants (the largest amount of grant support ever received in the Town’s history), passed several key pieces of legislation to support economic growth and development, restructured Town operations and service line operations (which has allowed us to bring on new high caliber professionals who are now leading our Public Safety and Finance divisions), established a robust community events and outreach team that is focused on diversity and inclusion, implemented changes to improve the Town’s beautification efforts, and most importantly, secured strong partnerships with County, State, and Federal stakeholders. It is no secret that the Town of Upper Marlboro has been plagued with a dark history and past, but my hope is that in the past two years under my leadership, each of you has seen the great promise for our future.

The Town of Upper Marlboro has so much untapped potential, and my hope is that the next official who is elected to the prestigious office of Mayor and President of the Board of Commissioners assumes the role with integrity, strength, perseverance, but most importantly, vision and a commitment to public service. I encourage each of you to continue to work closely with Town staff and leadership to ensure that the good work we have started together will continue to bear fruit.

I am truly excited about what the future holds for the Town and what the future holds for me, as we both embark on new journeys. Until we meet again, in partnership and service. – Tonga

In Service & Partnership,

The Honorable Mayor Tonga Y. Turner

President, Board of Town Commissioners

Town of Upper Marlboro

From the Marlboro VFD

Over the past years, the Marlboro VFD and the Town of Upper Marlboro have re-built a new strong partnership and have worked closely with each other for the betterment of the department, and the town.

We would like to wish Mayor Turner the best in all of her future endeavors and wish her the best. On behalf of the officers and members of the Marlboro VFD Thank You for your service!

 

 

First Black Mayor Upper Marlboro, Tonga Turner Resigns  was originally published on woldcnews.com