Milwaukee Ald. Khalif Rainey won't seek reelection

Milwaukee Ald. Khalif Rainey will not seek reelection, he announced Thursday, Dec. 21.

Rainey represents Milwaukee's 7th District on the Common Council. The district includes neighborhoods from Center Street north to Villard Avenue, and from 20th Street west to 60th Street on the city's north side.

First elected in 2016, Rainey's current term ends in May 2024. He previously served on the Milwaukee County Board of Supervisors.

SIGN UP TODAY: Get daily headlines, breaking news emails from FOX6 News

In a statement announcing his decision, Rainey highlighted a number of community-focused initiatives – as well as the creation of "Hip Hop Week MKE" and the Office of African-American affairs – as staples of his tenure.

"When my colleagues and I started talking about food deserts and how to end them, few even seemed to understand the problem. Now it’s a priority," Rainey's statement said. "We lifted barriers for felons that prevented them from purchasing City-owned property. We pushed for simple, street-level changes to improve the cleanliness of our City and reduce reckless driving. We created an Equity Impact Statement to make legislation more transparent and evaluate it through a different lens."

Milwaukee City Hall

The Common Council will see a number of changes in 2024.

Alds. Mark Murphy and Mark Borkowski previously announced they would not seek reelection. Murphy, who represents the 10th District, is the Common Council's longest-serving member. Borkowski has represented the 11th district since 2015 and won reelection in 2016 and 2020. Prior to that, he was a Milwaukee County supervisor for 23 years – first elected in 1992.

Rainey's full statement regarding his decision can be found through the city's website.