David Goins | |
|---|---|
| Mayor of Alton, Illinois | |
| Assumed office May 12, 2021 | |
| Preceded by | Brant Walker |
| Personal details | |
| Born | July 26,1960 |
| Spouse | Sheila Goins |
| Children | 3 |
| Education | B.A. College of the Ozarks |
David Goins (born July 26,1960) is an American politician who was elected in 2021 as the first African American mayor of Alton,Illinois. [1] [2]
Goins was born on July 26,1960,the son of Mark and Opal Goins. [3] His mother died in 1967 and his father died in 1971. [3] He was raised thereafter by his grandparents. [3] In 1978,he graduated from Alton High School [3] where he was an all-star basketball player. [4] In 1983,he graduated from the College of the Ozarks on a full basketball scholarship with a B.A. in English. [3] After school,he worked as a detention officer and correctional officer at the Madison County Department of Court and Probation Services. [3] In 1986,he joined the Alton Police Department reaching sergeant in 1999. [3] He retired as a police office in 2010. [3] in 2016,he was elected to the Alton school board. [4]
In 2021,Goins entered the race for mayor of Alton on a platform focusing on the recruitment of new businesses,job growth,the revitalization of the downtown,COVID-19 vaccinations,and the encouragement of recent college graduates to return to the city. [3] He was supported by the local unions. [5] On April 6,2021,Goins was elected mayor of Alton defeating two-term Mayor Brant Walker 2,021-1,625 to become the first African-American mayor [3] since the city's founding in 1818. In 2019,Alton was 68.7% white,24.9% Black,0.4% Asian,1.6% Latino,and 4.3% multi-racial. [6] He was sworn in on May 12,2021. [3] In July 2021,Illinois Governor J. B. Pritzker appointed Goins to the Central Port District Board. [7] Upon taking office,he faced 8.5% unemployment,the loss or closure of over 200 businesses due to Covid,and a budget shortfall fueled by underfunded public employees' pensions. [8] In his first term,he reversed a $3.1 million deficit to a $2.1 million surplus,established a new business district that attracted major national retailers,and hired additional police officers and fully equipped the force with body-worn cameras. [9]
Goins defeated Brant Walker and Raymond Strebel in the April 1,2025 general election. [10]
In 1985,he married Sheila Goins;they have three children. [3] Since 2001,he has served as a pastor at the Morning Star Missionary Baptist Church in Alton. [3] In 2018,he was diagnosed with prostate cancer. [3]