First it was a rally by the Ku Klux Klan in her area that cost hundreds of thousands of dollars to provide police protection. Then it was a tornado that hit the area on Memorial Day. Then, on Aug. 4, a man began firing into a crowd in the popular Oregon District, killing nine people and injuring 27 in 32 seconds before police killed him.

“My city had a hell of a summer,” Dayton Mayor Nan Whaley told an audience at the Columbus Metropolitan Club (CMC) on Wednesday.

Sitting down with WBNS’s Jerry Revish, Whaley recounted those incidents and talked about other issues, including a potential run for governor.

She said she was in bed when she received the news about the shooting, with the city attorney coming to her door to tell her. Dayton became the 250th mass shooting in the nation this year, and she said the tragedy, along with a shooting in El Paso, TX earlier that day, has galvanized a conversation about gun violence again.

While she expressed less hope about anything addressing gun violence passing federally, she expressed more hope that Ohio would do something, and backs Gov. Mike DeWine’s 17-point plan, even though she said she wishes it went further.

Whaley recalled when at a vigil that DeWine spoke at, the crowd began to chant “Do something.” She said seeing her community react in anger and frustration and driving them to action makes her push for gun legislation even more important.

She noted polls that show high support for expanded background checks and red flag laws.

“I don’t think 90 percent of Ohioans support the Ohio State Buckeyes, but they support background checks,” she said. She added that it is frustrating when she travels to Washington D.C. and Columbus, but sees no conversation moving forward.

Asked later what is a must have in legislation that passes, Whale said she hopes to get red flag legislation through. She believes DeWine is going to be key in getting something passed. She also said she believes the Legislature is “bought by the Buckeye Firearms Association,” making it harder for something to get passed.

Whaley said some Republican lawmakers have expressed frustration that they believe Democrats are using the issue to win 2020 elections, but she said mayors don’t care about the 2020 election. “We want action now.” She said she wants lawmakers to look at the space both sides of the aisle can agree on to get something done like on background checks, and she believes the voices of mayors can be more powerful in that space. Federally, however, she said she worries “the air is filled with impeachment talk,” which is going to take away from the gun debate.

She also discussed several other issues. On the opioid crisis, she said she wants Dayton to treat addiction as the mental health issue that it is. Asked about the reluctance to make naloxone more available to save overdose patients because it just encourages someone to keep using thinking they will always be saved, Whaley said that argument saddens her because the addicted person is still a human being. If that person is alive, there’s still a chance to get them into recovery, but that can’t happen if they are dead, she said.

On schools, she said Dayton has been in line for a possible takeover but improved on its recent report card. She said the rating system “is a goofy system,” and said there needs to be a more holistic approach to failing schools.

She said she would consider running for governor again, but said right now, “I am trying to get through this year.”

“I am definitely, like the city, going through a growth stage. It’s been hard. It’s been difficult. It is incredibly painful. But it has been the greatest honor to lead our community through this,” she said.