Austin Quinn-Davidson
Mayor of Anchorage
Acting
In office
October 23, 2020 – July 1, 2021
Preceded byEthan Berkowitz
Succeeded byDave Bronson
Personal details
Born (1979-10-29) October 29, 1979 (age 44)
Sacramento, California, U.S.
Political partyIndependent
EducationUniversity of California, Santa Barbara (BA)
University of California, Davis (JD)
WebsiteCampaign website

Austin Quinn-Davidson (born October 29, 1979) is an American politician and attorney who served as the acting mayor of Anchorage, Alaska after the resignation of Ethan Berkowitz in October 2020 until the inauguration of Dave Bronson in July 2021. Quinn-Davidson began serving on the Anchorage Assembly in 2018.[1][2][3]

Early life and education

Quinn-Davidson was born in Sacramento, California.[4] She earned a Bachelor of Arts in environmental studies from the University of California, Santa Barbara in 2001 and a Juris Doctor from UC Davis School of Law in 2007.[5]

Career

Prior to serving as a member of the Assembly, Quinn-Davidson was a member of the Anchorage Budget Advisory and Women's Commissions.[6] At the time of her election to the Assembly in 2018, Quinn-Davidson served as the Legal Affairs & Land Transactions Director at Great Land Trust, a non-profit organization based in Southcentral Alaska. While Assembly seats are nonpartisan, Quinn-Davidson has been referred to as a progressive.[7]

Mayor of Anchorage

In October 2020, incumbent mayor Ethan Berkowitz announced that he had conducted an inappropriate texting relationship with a local television reporter. Berkowitz then resigned from office, effective October 23. Upon the announcement, the Anchorage Assembly was restructured. Quinn-Davidson, who had been serving as vice chair, was selected to serve as chair, placing her first in the mayoral line of succession.[8][9][10] When Quinn-Davidson assumed office, she became the first woman and openly-gay person to serve as mayor of Anchorage.[11][12] She chose not to run for election to a full term as mayor in 2021.

References

  1. ^ George, Kavitha; Anchorage, Alaska Public Media- (2020-10-17). "Assembly reorganizes, elects Austin Quinn-Davidson to become interim mayor". Alaska Public Media. Retrieved 2020-10-17.
  2. ^ "Austin Quinn-Davidson". Ballotpedia. Retrieved 2020-10-17.
  3. ^ "Anchorage Assembly chooses Austin Quinn-Davidson to serve as acting mayor". Anchorage Daily News. 2020-10-17. Retrieved 2020-10-17.
  4. ^ "Get to Know Anchorage Assembly Candidate Austin Quinn-Davidson". The Anchorage Press. Retrieved 2020-10-17.
  5. ^ "About Austin". austinquinndavidson.com. Retrieved April 29, 2022.
  6. ^ "About Us - Member Profiles". www.muni.org. Retrieved 2020-10-17.
  7. ^ Buxton, Matt (2018-08-08). "Progressive Quinn-Davidson wins big in Anchorage Assembly special election". The Midnight Sun. Retrieved 2020-10-17.
  8. ^ Landfield, Jeff (2020-10-16). "Austin Quinn-Davidson elected new Assembly chair, will become acting mayor". The Alaska Landmine. Retrieved 2020-10-17.
  9. ^ Treinen, Lex (2020-10-15). "With Anchorage's mayor stepping down, a successor will be chosen Friday". KTOO. Retrieved 2020-10-17.
  10. ^ "Anchorage mayor admits to "inappropriate" relationship with TV reporter who was arrested". www.cbsnews.com. Retrieved 2020-10-17.
  11. ^ Shannon, Joel. "Anchorage chooses first woman, openly gay acting mayor, report says". USA TODAY. Retrieved 2020-10-18.
  12. ^ George, Kavitha (2020-10-23). "Austin Quinn-Davidson, a relative newcomer, to be sworn in as Anchorage mayor Friday". Alaska Public Media. Retrieved 2020-10-24.
Political offices Preceded byEthan Berkowitz Mayor of AnchorageActing 2020–2021 Succeeded byDave Bronson
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