31 Facts About Matthew Tuerk

Matthew Tuerk was born on March 18,1975 and is an American politician and economic development official serving as the mayor of Allentown, Pennsylvania since January 2022.

Matthew Tuerk was born March 18,1975, in East Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania.

Matthew Tuerk's grandmother was a Cuban immigrant who settled in East Stroudsburg in 1946.

Matthew Tuerk was raised speaking English but was surrounded by Cuban traditions and food during his childhood.

Matthew Tuerk's family moved from East Stroudsburg to Boulder, Colorado in 1984.

Matthew Tuerk earned a BS degree in international business from the College of Charleston.

Matthew Tuerk minored in Spanish and Latin American studies, during which time became particularly interested in Latino culture, learning to speak Spanish and traveling to Latin America.

Matthew Tuerk received an MBA with a concentration in international economic development from the Darla Moore School of Business at the University of South Carolina.

Matthew Tuerk spent four years working for an outdoor advertising company in Panama, and later spent time in Nicaragua.

Matthew Tuerk became an assistant director of the Allentown Economic Development Corporation in 2008 and spent five years with the organization.

Matthew Tuerk co-founded Make Lehigh Valley, the region's first "hackerspace" located at AEDC's Bridgeworks Enterprise Center business incubator.

In 2013, Matthew Tuerk joined the Lehigh Valley Economic Development Corporation, where he worked for seven years.

Matthew Tuerk began with the organization as its first director of research and innovation.

Matthew Tuerk was the chairman the Lehigh-Northampton Airport Authority board of governors, the governing body of the Lehigh Valley International Airport.

Matthew Tuerk was a member of the board of associates executive committee at Muhlenberg College in Allentown.

Matthew Tuerk served previously served on the board of trustees at Moravian Academy, treasurer of the Old Allentown Preservation Association, and as a member of the Allentown City Shade Tree Commission.

On October 6,2020, approximately a week after resigning his position with LVEDC, Matthew Tuerk announced his candidacy as a Democratic candidate for Mayor of Allentown in the 2021 Allentown mayoral election.

Matthew Tuerk was the first candidate to enter the race in an election anticipated to have multiple candidates.

Matthew Tuerk was relatively unknown to voters at the beginning of the primary election.

Matthew Tuerk raised campaign funds to allocate to improving his name recognition, and focused on meeting voters face-to-face or by phone, setting a goal of talking to 150 voters on weekdays, 250 on Saturdays, and at least 200 on Sundays.

Matthew Tuerk sought to connect with voters who requested mail-in ballots in what, in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, was the first municipal primary to allow no-excuse voting by mail.

Matthew Tuerk raised more money than any of his three primary candidates, and spent $92,000 out of the $209,000 spent between the four primary candidates combined heading into the final two weeks of the primary election.

The Morning Call reported that Matthew Tuerk performed well in all of the city's precincts, but especially well in precincts where voter turnout was relatively high.

On January 3,2022, Matthew Tuerk was sworn in as Allentown mayor, becoming the first Latino mayor in the city's history.

Matthew Tuerk has made safe streets and pedestrian safety initiatives a priority for the city, and vowed to end pedestrian related fatalities in the city.

Matthew Tuerk opted not to veto the council's proposed budget allowing it to take effect.

Matthew Tuerk warned residents would see higher tax increases in the future and expressed disapproval over council's decision to use general fund revenue to fund government operations, calling their actions short-sighted.

On November 21,2023, in the midst of the city's budget impasse, Matthew Tuerk fired Karen Ocasio, a city employee who had filed multiple complaints regarding discrimination and was an early supporter of City Council's investigation into allegations of racism and mismanagement.

On December 21,2023, Matthew Tuerk announced Allentown was among 22 finalists to potentially receive millions in federal funding for economically distressed areas.

Matthew Tuerk's wife Karen is a lecturer in environmental science at Muhlenberg College.

Matthew Tuerk speaks four languages: English, Spanish, Portuguese, and French.