Broward Mayor Runs for Prestigious National Association of Counties 2nd VP Post

Broward County Mayor Barbara Sharief/ District 8 Broward County Commissioner Broward County Mayor Barbara Sharief has submitted a letter to the Executive Director of the National Association of Counties stating her intent to run for the office of NACO's Second Vice President. Her colleagues on the Broward County Commission unanimously endorsed her.  As a former President of the Florida Association of Counties, she was also endorsed by the FAC's Board of Directors during their policy conference on Friday, September 29, 2017. Mayor Sharief's involvement has included serving as a member of the Health Steering Committee for several years, and, more recently, as appointed by NACo President, Leon County Commissioner Bryan Desloge, as Chair of NACo's Medicaid and Indigent Care Subcommittee (2016-2017 term; Health Steering Committee; Vice-Chair, NACo Health Steering Committee (2017); and Vice-Chair of NACo's International Economic Development Task Force (2016-2017 term). In Broward County, Mayor Sharief has served as a Commissioner for seven years and was selected to serve as Mayor twice during that time.  Since her election, she became involved in FAC, ultimately serving four years on the executive committee with the culmination of serving as Florida Association of Counties President. Florida is one of the most diverse states comprised of large, small and medium sized counties. All with their own unique issues that mirrors all states represented by NACo. Involved in the nursing profession for 25 years, with advanced degrees, she is a fierce advocate for protecting all county governments from unfunded mandates and promoting a common-sense approach to solving our healthcare issues. Sharief has first-hand experience dealing with the opioid crisis, mental health and substance abuse issues. She recently hosted a countywide Opioid Epidemic Town Hall Meeting to bring all parties together to solve this challenge and has been aggressive in her effort to receive federal help to sufficiently solve the opioid epidemic. Sharief's commitment to continuing to advance our country's efforts for full diversity and equality cannot be understated.  As an African American woman, she constantly butted up against glass ceilings and invisible barriers.  When serving in her first term as Mayor of Broward County in 2014, she was the first African American female selected to serve in that position and again made history when selected to serve as Mayor in 2016.  Never has an African American female served in that capacity in Broward's 101-year history! The NACO election will take place at the 83rd NACo Annual Conference and Exposition, July 13-16, 2018, in Davidson County (Nashville), TN. NACo provides essential services to the nation's 3,068 counties and advances issues with a unified voice before the federal government, improves the public's understanding of county government, assists counties in finding and sharing innovative solutions through education and research and provides value-added services to save counties and taxpayers money.