It was 11 years ago when Mark Hughes— a Pacific Gas & Electric executive and member of Benicia’s Parks, Recreation and Cemetery Commission— was elected to the City Council. He was re-elected in 2009 and 2014, the latter year in which he received enough votes to become the city’s vice mayor. Now he is looking to make the leap to become the city’s mayor.

This is not the first time Hughes has considered the possibility of running for Benicia’s highest office. He was approached prior to the last mayoral election to run, but he turned it down because of his commitment to his other job at PG&E.

“At the time, I was working full time in San Francisco, and it wouldn’t have been fair for me or the city,” he said. “The City Council requires a lot of time, and I think as mayor the time commitment is even greater and I just didn’t think I would have the time to dedicate. I retired three and a half years ago, so now I do have the time to do that.”

Hughes and his wife Michele first moved to Benicia more than 30 years ago with their children Stephen and Kelly. Stephen followed in his father’s footsteps to become a senior land agent for PG&E, and Kelly is now a fifth-grade teacher at Joe Henderson Elementary School.

Hughes’ children would play a big role in his decision to enter politics.

“I coached my daughter in girls’ softball for many years,” he said. “I coached my son in Little League baseball, soccer and basketball, and then I was on the Benicia Little League Board of Directors for 10 years.”

In 1994, while still serving with the Little League board, Hughes was appointed to the Parks and Recreation Commission, which gave him a little more encouragement to run for the City Council in 2005.

“It gave you a glimpse into local politics without being immersed in it,” he said. “We would meet on a regular basis with city staff, and we would be providing recommendations to the City Council. You got a pretty good feel for what it was all about, which made me a little more comfortable, when I decided to run for the office as opposed to not being involved in anything at all. I think it was a nice stepping stone from the commission to the City Council.”

Hughes feels the city has accomplished a lot in the last decade, including bouncing back from the Great Recession, maintaining one of the lowest crime rates in the region and being able to increase population without losing the city’s “small-town charm.” He also believes Benicia has made great strides in becoming a green city with the establishment of the Community Sustainability Commission, the increased amount of solar panels and converting the former Mills Elementary School site into an energy-efficient community center.

“We could have just as easily refurbished it and had the community services employees move in, but instead we went above and beyond in making that a very energy-efficient facility,” he said.

“We need to continue to focus on ensuring we’re doing what needs to be done, but I’m very proud of the work that we’ve completed thus far,” he added.

However, Hughes does see areas of improvement for Benicia, namely fixing the roads and improving relationships with the Benicia Unified School District, including the establishment of monthly visits with Superintendent Charles Young.

The big issue for Hughes, however, is economic development.

“Status quo is not an option,” he said. “I think we’re gonna have to be more aggressive, more creative in retaining the businesses we have and reaching out to attract new businesses.”

Hughes is also looking to establish a sense of unity on the City Council. In recent years, residents have expressed concerns that citizens and the council have become divided over issues like Valero’s Crude-By-Rail Project— which Hughes voted to delay until more information was obtained by the Surface Transportation Board and then voted to deny the permit after determining the risk level was too high— and Seeno’s Northern Gateway development proposal—in which Hughes has stated he does not believe the Industrial Park needs residential development but has proposed trying to come up with alternative proposals for how the property can be built.

“The key to leadership is if you’re going to be effective as a leader, you need to earn the trust of people you work with,” he said.

Hughes noted that he not only has the support of various local unions and four out of the five BUSD trustees but also the remaining three city councilmembers.

“I think they’re doing so because they see a different style of leadership is necessary and that I have earned their trust and respect,” he said.

Despite the endorsements, Hughes feels the councilmembers do not see eye to eye on a lot of issues and that while differing opinions are encouraged, it has hindered progress on key issues.

“The problem with a divided council is you’ll get things done but not right away,” he said. “We need to work together to make progress faster than we have.”

In regard to his opponent, Mayor Elizabeth Patterson, Hughes feels that although they have different leadership styles they both share a love for the city and that one of his commitments when seeking the mayoral office was to not build a campaign around attacking her.

Hughes hopes that his devotion to Benicia will make him the city’s top leader.

“My wife and I moved here from San Francisco and never looked back,” he said. “I wouldn’t dream of living anywhere else.”

For more information on Hughes’ campaign, visit http://markhughesformayor.strikingly.com/ or facebook.com/MarkHughesForMayor.