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Council debate over mayor selection process ends with no change after motion to restore strict rotation dies
Summary
Councilmember Marsha McLean proposed reinstating an automatic rotation policy so each council member would serve one year as mayor pro tem and the following year as mayor; the motion was made but received no second and the proposal died after council discussion.
Councilmember Marsha McLean opened a discussion on the mayoral selection process, proposing the council restore a strict automatic rotation so each elected councilmember would serve as mayor pro tem for one year and then as mayor the following year.
McLean described the proposal as a way "to foster a cooperative spirit among council members by depoliticizing the selection of the position of mayor," citing language from the city's procedural attachments that she said supported automatic rotation. She said she had proposed similar language when she was mayor in 2019 and argued the rotation would prevent personal vendettas from influencing mayoral selection.
Other councilmembers questioned whether reverting to rotation was necessary. Several members noted that Santa Clarita has used a council vote to select the mayor since 1999 and that a majority‑vote selection has functioned without systemwide problems for 25 years. Councilmember Gibbs said he supported the principle of rotation but believed the council should retain the ability to vote. Mayor Pro Tem West and other members stressed the mayor is primarily a ceremonial and facilitative role and that the city manager runs daily operations.
McLean made a motion to adopt the automatic rotation language; the motion received no second and "died," the mayor announced. No formal vote was taken to change the process.
Ending: The council returned to business with no change to the current majority‑vote procedure for selecting mayor and mayor pro tem.
