The City Council will be asked this afternoon to delay voting on a new leader for a couple of days until a new colleague is seated.
The proposal by current council President Todd Gloria stems from a conflict between the panel's rules on when to choose a leader for the upcoming year and a City Charter amendment approved by voters that sets inauguration day for Dec. 10, or the first business day thereafter.
The way the dates fell this year, the council members could vote on their leader today, before incoming District 6 representative Chris Cate is sworn in Wednesday.
According to city documents posted online, Gloria is proposing that the council suspend its rule for selecting a president and postpone the vote until after Cate is seated. He wrote in a memo to colleagues that he planned to schedule a special meeting next Wednesday afternoon, following Cate's inauguration.
Gloria's proposal comes amid a backdrop of talk that he could be challenged for the post by Sherri Lightner, who serves as the president pro tem, or second-in-command. Both are among the majority Democrats on the technically nonpartisan City Council. Their margin is 6-3, but will shrink to 5-4 when Cate takes office. Lightner could win the post if supported by all of the Republicans.
Lightner's office did not respond to a request for comment, while other council members have remained silent on the matter.
The council president wields considerable power over setting meeting agendas, determines committee assignments and often appears with the mayor in a ceremonial role.
The council will also hear a presentation of the city's five-year financial outlook. The document, issued last month, projects annual surpluses but also a host of demands for the extra money, including infrastructure projects and higher pay for police officers.
