Marcia Fudge, the United States Secretary of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), will be stepping down from her position on March 22, she has said in a release that was posted to the department’s website on Monday.
The release did not state why Fudge had decided abruptly to resign but said she was looking forward to life as a “private citizen”. Nevertheless, Fudge’s letter captured her sentiments on public service, which she has performed her entire adult life.
She wrote:
As a dedicated public servant for nearly five decades, I have been devoted to improving the quality of life for the people of this nation, focusing on those with the greatest need. Having worked at every level of government, including as a mayor, then as a congressional staffer, a member of Congress, and now as the 18th Secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, I have worked tirelessly to ensure that America lives up to its promise of liberty and justice for all.
She also went on to enumerate some of the accomplishments HUD has made during her tenure. This includes helping “more than two million families stay in their homes and avoid foreclosure, removing “barriers for people with student loan debt trying to buy a home with an FHA mortgage” and enforcing “Fair Housing laws and took a stance against racial bias and discrimination in the appraisal market”.
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Reacting to Secretary Fudge’s announcement, Vice President Kamala Harris posted on X: My friend Marcia Fudge has been a true champion for the families, homeowners, and renters of America. Madam Secretary, I am grateful for your leadership, partnership and dedication to advancing opportunity and equity. You are a trailblazer and I’m proud to fight alongside you.”
Fudge, who was appointed to the position by President Joe Biden in 2021, was initially criticized by Republicans as a politician who lacks bipartisan will. Subsequently, she has faced criticisms for superintending over America’s most dire housing affordability crisis in decades.
The 71-year-old Cleveland native was a congresswoman representing Ohio’s 11th district from 2009 until her appointment to HUD. Until she went to the US Capitol, Fudge had been the mayor of Warrensville Heights since 2000, serving as the town’s first Black and female mayor.