One way or another, Youngstown City Council meetings will be presided over by a new president next year.

Two Democrats — Mike Ray and Anita Davis — are vying for the seat to be vacated by Tom Hetrick, who served one term as council president and decided not to run for reelection.

The primary is Tuesday, May 6. Independent candidates have until May 5 to file for the November general election. Tracy Randall, the only Republican to file for council president, did not qualify because she lacked the required valid signatures.

Davis and Ray are no strangers to Youngstown council. Davis, 71, has represented the city’s 6th Ward since 2016 and is a retired Youngstown Police Department detective sergeant. Ray, 48, has represented the city’s 4th Ward since 2010.

In addition to political affiliation and council experience, Davis and Ray also share a vision for the role of council president. At present, that person runs council meetings but doesn’t have a vote. But as David Skolnick, The Vindicator’s longtime political reporter recently noted, the council president becomes mayor and completes the unexpired term if a vacancy occurs.

That has happened once in Youngstown’s history — in 2011, when Jay Williams accepted a role in then-President Barack Obama’s administration and council president Charles Sammarone became mayor.

In part because of that potentially important role, Davis and Ray agree that the position of council president should come with an enhanced sphere of influence — or in lieu of that — be eliminated altogether.

“This position could be utilized differently than it has been,” Ray said. “You look at some policy initiatives or some things where council in the minutia of legislation and the administration in the day-to-day operations, how do we bridge the gap and work on some things that we know just fall to the wayside?”

Ray’s other priorities include ensuring that citizens feel safe in their homes, strengthening public safety and leveraging technology to help council and the city move forward.

Ray works as operations manager at TRC Companies, Inc., in Monroeville, Pa.

Davis feels so strongly about restructuring the role of council president that she said she will pursue either that or the elimination of the role as an elected position. It is her primary goal, if elected.

“I debated running for it because it was like what’s the best way to get people to understand I want the position eliminated not for anything personal,” she said. “I felt that if I had the seat and I’m campaigning for it then it looks less like I’m going against someone else. That’s the whole thing. If I don’t win this election, I will still push for the elimination of this seat or the total restructuring of it. But at least people would understand that this is not a personal thing of sour grapes.”

Win or lose, Davis plans to seek a charter amendment put before city voters to enhance the power of council president. Failing that, she wants the role to be eliminated as an elected position. In that case, the person in the role would be selected by council on a rotating basis.

Ray told Skolnick that the power of the position needs to be enhanced or the post eliminated. Barring either of those scenarios, Ray said other changes could be made, including having the president serve on council committees as an ex-officio member. That would require council’s approval.

He added that council should have work sessions, which the council president would run, to set an agenda and priorities.

We find it refreshing that the candidates’ approaches to the job seem to align in terms of the council president having more than a procedural role.

We’re giving the edge to Ray, who has served for a few more years on council and seems to have a more detailed vision as a potential successor to Hetrick.