By David W. Burns
March 28, 2011

Mayoral elections took place in a handful of cities on March 22 as new faces were selected to lead in Tampa, Jacksonville, and Kansas City (MO).

In Kansas City, Sly James was elected mayor with 54 percent of the vote versus his opponent Mike Burke, who finished with 46 percent. Current Mayor Mark Funkhouser lost his bid for reelection during the primary election, which took place February 22.

In Tampa, Bob Buckhorn defeated Rose Ferlita with 63 percent of the vote versus Ferlita’s 37 percent. Buckhorn, a businessman and a former city council member, is replacing term-limited Mayor Pam Iorio. Buckhorn will take office April 1.

North of Tampa, in Jacksonville, Republican Mike Hogan and Democrat Alvin Brown will face each other in a runoff election since no candidate received more than 50 percent of the vote. Hogan led Brown 34 percent to 24 percent during the March 15 primary. The remaining votes were split among four write-in candidates. The two will once again square off on May 17.

Prior to the elections on March 22, the City of West Palm Beach elected Jeri Muoio on March 8 with 51.5 percent of the vote. Current Mayor Lois Frankel was term limited and thus could not seek a third term.

These elections come several weeks prior to elections in Las Vegas, Madison, Denver, Dallas, and San Antonio and about a month after Chicago’s mayoral election.

Look for more election coverage from other mayoral elections in U.S. MAYOR as they happen.

Lincoln (NE) Mayor Chris Beutler presented the Mayor’s Medallion to famed primatologist and world-renowned environmental leader Jane Goodall on March 19 at the Spring Creek Prairie Audubon Center. Famed chimpanzee expert and conservationist Goodall was in Lincoln to reflect on her personal and professional career, and spoke of the importance of protecting both tropical forests and prairies.