Lexington has begun the formal process of selecting its next mayor, which will include a special election in November.
At last Thursday’s regular business meeting, City Council put forth the names of individuals they were considering appointing as interim mayor to fill the seat left vacant by the recent passing of Mayor Frank Friedman. Prior to the discussion, it was noted that they had decided to appoint a member of Council to that position.
Only one name was put forward – David Sigler.
“I, like the rest of my colleagues, wish we were not in this situation,” Sigler told The News-Gazette on Friday. “We miss Mayor Friedman deeply. He was an excellent mayor. We’re still trying to figure out how to move on and honor him.
“Honestly, I’m humbled that my colleagues feel I am qualified to assume the interim position right now,” he continued. “I certainly wouldn’t do it if I didn’t have the support of my colleagues, and I just want to do the best job I can for the city of Lexington [and] the citizens.”
Chuck Smith, who formally put Sigler’s name forward as Council’s choice for the interim position, said that he had been asked by several people if he would seek the appointment or run in the special election, but that after giving the matter “a lot of thought,” he felt Sigler was the more qualified candidate.
“He devours his role and responsibilities on our City Council,” he said. “It’s been a pleasure working with him over the last 12 years. I think he would be the ideal person to move us forward [from] where we’re at.” Sigler was first elected to Lexington City Council in 2014 and is nearing the conclusion of his third term. Earlier this year, he filed to run for a fourth term on City Council, the only incumbent candidate to do so. He also serves on the Rockbridge Area Recreation Organization board and has previously served on the board of Main Street Lexington and the Regional Tourism Board.
Sigler will be formally appointed as the city’s interim mayor at a special called meeting Thursday afternoon. Under state law, the names of any qualified individuals being considered for appointment to an interim position must be made public at least seven days prior to the appointment. Once appointed, Sigler will effectively resign from his current seat on City Council.
Council also voted Thursday to petition the court for a special election to fill out the remainder of Friedman’s term, which expires in 2028. Sigler will serve as interim mayor until the winner of that election is declared and sworn in. Candidates who wish to run in that election will have until Aug. 14 to fill out the necessary paperwork with the city registrar and collect the necessary signatures to get their name on the ballot. Sigler told The News-Gazette that he intends to run in the special election, which will be held as part of the Nov. 3 general election. Sigler’s name will remain on the ballot for the City Council race.
Vice-Mayor Marylin Alexander, who has assumed the duties of mayor until an interim can be appointed, spoke at Thursday’s meeting prior to the discussion of an interim mayor appointment. During her remarks, she said that she, like Smith, has had a number of citizens ask if she would be seeking either the appointment as interim mayor or running in the special election, but that she had decided not to do either. To be appointed interim mayor, she noted, she would have to step down from her seat on Council, and that she did not want to “give up the balance of my term serving the community of Lexington that I love so dearly.”
As to running in the special election, Alexander said she had decided against doing so because she didn’t feel that she could give the position of mayor the time and dedication it deserved while also balancing all of the other ways she serves the community as well as her work and her family. She also said that she saw this as an opportunity to “begin the transition to a new generation of leadership,” in the city and that she would “look forward to help navigate change over the next few months and filling the remainder of my term.”
