With 63 thousand votes, Gustavo Finck became the most voted mayor in the history of the municipality and the first elected councilor to take over the municipal Executive. His commitment is clear: to bring efficiency, transparency and management that is close to the population.

“What motivated me to enter politics was to do something different, to help our community. I never imagined being a councilman, much less a mayor, but when I realized it, I was already more involved in politics than my father, who was a politician in the city. Now, I am fulfilling a dream of mine and my family’s,” said Gustavo Finck.

Management challenges and priorities

The new administration takes over a municipality with considerable financial challenges. With a budget of R$2 billion, Novo Hamburgo faces debt of almost R$3.5 billion, compromising R$771,000 of municipal revenue.

Furthermore, the city faces an inefficient public transportation system, serious health problems and a structural deficit in education. Therefore, Gustavo intends to focus on improving essential public services, ensuring a government that is present and aligned with the demands of the population.

“The main challenge will be to improve public transportation, offer quality healthcare services and bring young people back to school. We want beautiful schools, enthusiastic teachers and a management committed to rebuilding our city,” he said.

Reforms and new policies

As a councilman, Gustavo presented proposals that directly impacted the city's management. Among them, the Economic Freedom Law, approved by the City Council but initially rejected by the Executive. “We implemented the Economic Freedom Act in Novo Hamburgo. Even with the government’s initial rejection, they ended up presenting a similar project. This shows how we were able to guide the debate and bring about real change.”

Another controversial project proposed by him prohibits the use of public funds for events during times of public calamity. The measure was criticized by the previous administration, but was widely supported by the population. “If we are in a public calamity, the money needs to be used to meet the needs of the community. This is not the time to spend on events, but rather to prioritize the basics. When the time is right to celebrate, we will do so,” he points out.

In addition to these initiatives, his administration will also prioritize the restructuring of oncological care in the city, preventing 13 thousand families from having to travel to neighboring municipalities for cancer treatments.

“It is a commitment I made and I will honor. We cannot accept that patients and their families have to go through this ordeal in order to get treatment. This will be one of the focuses of our administration in the first year,” says the mayor.

New strategic partnerships

Gustavo Finck advocates a management model that combines the public sector with the private sector and public-private partnerships (PPPs). He has already started talks with Governor Eduardo Leite (PSDB/RS) and state secretaries to facilitate improvements in several areas.

“I participated in international missions with the State Government and spoke directly with Leite about the needs of our city. We need to attract investment and make management more efficient. Let’s learn from successful examples to transform Novo Hamburgo,” he says.

The mayor also believes that reducing bureaucracy is one of the main goals of his administration, ensuring that administrative processes are more agile and accessible to the population.

“I want to be remembered as the mayor who encouraged children, gave opportunities to young people and transformed Novo Hamburgo. I want to leave behind good works and a management that is consistent with the reality of the city. I will be the mayor of our city’s centennial, and that fills me with pride,” he concludes.