St. George • For the first time since the city of St. George was founded in 1861, a woman will serve as mayor.
City councilwoman Michele Randall was appointed mayor of St. George in a four-to-one vote Tuesday afternoon, the Spectrum newspaper reports.
She will serve the 11 months remaining in the term of mayor Jon Pike, who stepped down on Jan. 4 to run the Utah Insurance Department under newly elected Governor Spencer Cox.
Randall said she plans to run the city in a similar way and is “very excited” to get started.
She was one of two finalists out of 23 applicants for the seat. The other was Mayor Pro Tem Jimmie Hughes.
Randall intends to run for a full four-year term in the upcoming municipal election in November.
Councilwoman Danielle Larkin said Randall is making history and was also the best qualified person for the role.
“We chose the best applicant today; gender had nothing to do with that,” Larkin said. “But gender has been a barrier in our community for many years, and, so, a happy byproduct of choosing who I felt is the best candidate today is that we overcame a wonderful barrier.”
