Baltimore Mayor Brandon M. Scott has been named one of the nation’s most influential rising leaders—twice. This week, he was recognized on the TIME100 Next 2025 Rising Stars list and also honored among EBONY Magazine’s prestigious Power 100: Community Crusaders, placing him in elite company as one of the most impactful public officials shaping the future of American cities.
These dual accolades spotlight both the substance and national resonance of Mayor Scott’s leadership: a data-driven, community-centered approach that is delivering historic public safety results, advancing equity, and redefining what it means to govern with accountability and long-term vision.
A National “Rising Star,” According to TIME
In its profile of Mayor Scott, TIME highlights the transformational shift underway in Baltimore as the city records its most significant crime reductions in decades. According to TIME, Scott—alongside Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson and Birmingham Mayor Randall Woodfin—is part of a new cohort of Black mayors “rewriting the playbook on urban safety.”
The publication notes that under Scott’s leadership:
- Baltimore recorded its lowest homicide rate in more than 50 years.
- His strategy reframes violence as a public health crisis, emphasizing prevention, credible messengers, community engagement, and data transparency.
- The results place Baltimore among the nation’s most closely watched models for evidence-based, community-driven safety reform.
Read the full TIME100 Next profile here:
🔗 https://time.com/collections/time100-next-2025/7318821/brandon-scott/
Honored Among EBONY’s “Power 100: Community Crusaders”
EBONY Magazine’s Power 100 list recognizes leaders who are advancing justice, strengthening communities, and shaping culture. Mayor Scott was selected among this year’s Community Crusaders for his steadfast commitment to making Baltimore safer, healthier, and more equitable.
The feature emphasizes his innovative public safety strategy, commitment to youth opportunity, and insistence that community voice—not politics—must drive city priorities.
Mayor Scott appears alongside fellow reform-minded mayors Brandon Johnson and Randall Woodfin, whom EBONY celebrates for collectively demonstrating that cities can achieve real safety when leaders center people, prevention, and partnership.
Read the full EBONY Power 100 listing:
🔗 https://www.ebony.com/power100-list/community-crusaders/
“The Mayoral Avengers”: A National Model for Urban Transformation
Together, Johnson, Scott, and Woodfin have been dubbed by TIME as the “Mayoral Avengers”—three leaders proving that bold governance and community-first strategy can help cities overcome longstanding challenges.
- In Baltimore, violent crime has plummeted as Scott strengthens wraparound supports, youth programs, and public health collaborations.
- In Chicago, Mayor Johnson—a former educator—is leading the city’s sharpest homicide decline in more than a decade.
- In Birmingham, Mayor Woodfin’s comprehensive neighborhood investment strategy has corresponded with a nearly 50% drop in homicides in 2025.
Their collective success offers a powerful narrative for the nation: when mayors govern with vision, innovation, and inclusion, entire cities transform.
A Moment of Pride for Baltimore
These national recognitions underscore what many Baltimore residents and partners have long known: Mayor Brandon Scott’s leadership is delivering measurable progress while raising the city’s profile as a model for forward-looking governance.
As Baltimore continues strengthening public safety, expanding opportunity, and investing in future generations, Scott’s dual honors from TIME and EBONY serve not only as personal accolades, but as a celebration of the community-wide momentum shaping a new chapter for the city.
This is awesome news. I have followed Mr. Scott since he was a community organizer, to President of city council. Many said that he was over his head. I reminded them to stay tuned and follow his community strategy. This is a truly dedicated man who loves Baltimore City. Peace and Blessings to him, his family and the city that he loves.