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So, what's next for Anchorage as our outgoing mayor heads to Washington D.C. as a U.S. Senator? While, Mark Begich will remain Anchorage's mayor for the next seven weeks, in the remaining four months before April's mayoral election, the question of who will be his temporary successor is still up for discussion.
Under Anchorage's charter, current chair Matt Claman would take over as the acting mayor until April's mayoral election.
“I'm chair of the assembly and I am certainly preparing to take on the very serious and challenging task of being acting mayor,” said Matt Claman, the Anchorage Assembly Chair.
Assembly Vice Chair Sheila Selkregg is putting her name on the April ballot. “Its really going to be important that whoever is sitting in that seat is able to completely focus on those decisions and not be concerned about a political career,” said Selkregg.
Claman doesn't see it as an advantage. He says “I just look all over the country and see people that are incumbents in more offices, at more levels of city and state and federal government that I wouldn't even begin to count.”
To most folks, there is no real benefit to running for office as the acting
“Reasonable minds can disagree over whether that's an actual advantage and as Mayor Begich has pointed out, mayors can run for reelection,” said Patrick Flynn, an Anchorage Assembly Member.
The Assembly can decide to change leadership at any time, which is a possibility between now and the time before Mayor Begich resigns.
“The most important job I think of the acting mayor over the next several months is maintaining city operations and preparing for a smooth transition to whoever becomes mayor,” said Flynn.
Selkregg says she expects Claman to step down as acting mayor if he runs for mayor in April and she is willing to do the same as the vice chair.
Claman says he expects to continue as chairman and to fill the temporary mayor's assignment until the April election. He believes he has the skills needed to be acting mayor. On his decision to possibly run for the permanent job as mayor, Claman is still undecided.
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