Mike Navarre (born June 9, 1956) is an American businessman and politician who formerly served as mayor of

Alaska Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S ...

Kenai Peninsula Borough Kenai Peninsula Borough is a borough of the U.S. state of Alaska. As of the 2020 census, the population was 58,799, up from 55,400 in 2010. The borough seat is Soldotna, the largest city is Kenai, and the most populated community is the c ...

and as a member of the

Alaska House of Representatives The Alaska State House of Representatives is the lower house in the Alaska Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Alaska. The House is composed of 40 members, each of whom represents a district of approximately 17,756 people pe ...

Biography

Mike Navarre was born on June 9, 1956, in

Lansing, Michigan Lansing () is the capital of the U.S. state of Michigan. It is mostly in Ingham County, although portions of the city extend west into Eaton County and north into Clinton County. The 2020 census placed the city's population at 112,644, maki ...

, one of eleven children (seven sons and four daughters) of George A. Navarre (1923–2009) and his wife Rose (née Doogan). The family moved to

Kenai, Alaska Kenai (, ) ( Dena'ina: ; russian: Кенай, ''Kenay'') is a city in the Kenai Peninsula Borough in the U.S. state of Alaska. It is one hundred and fifty-eight miles by road southwest from Anchorage. The population was 7,424 as of the 2020 ce ...

, when he was an infant, where they established themselves in the business community. At first, the family opened up a grocery store, then branched out into an auto service business and fast food franchising, both of which currently operate locations across Alaska. He dropped out of college in the 1970s and moved to

Fairbanks, Alaska Fairbanks is a home rule city and the borough seat of the Fairbanks North Star Borough in the U.S. state of Alaska. Fairbanks is the largest city in the Interior region of Alaska and the second largest in the state. The 2020 Census put the po ...

, moving back to Kenai in 1978. Navarre later returned to college and graduated with a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four yea ...

in Government from

Eastern Washington University Eastern Washington University (EWU) is a public university in Cheney, Washington. It also offers programs at a campus in EWU Spokane at the Riverpoint Campus and other campus locations throughout the state. Founded in 1882, the university is ...

in 1983. Navarre was first elected to the state House as a Democrat in 1984, and served until 1996, representing District 5 (holding Seat A) from 1985 to 1993 and District 9 from 1993 to 1996. He chaired the House Finance Committee for several years and was Majority Leader from 1989 until 1991. In 1996, Navarre successfully ran for mayor of Kenai Peninsula Borough, before being defeated by Dale Bagley in 1999. He once again ran in 2011, and was reelected in 2014. During his first term as mayor, he served as president of the Alaska Conference of Mayors. In October 2017, while the election to replace Navarre had gone to a

runoff Runoff, run-off or RUNOFF may refer to: * RUNOFF, the first computer text-formatting program * Runoff or run-off, another name for bleed, printing that lies beyond the edges to which a printed sheet is trimmed * Runoff or run-off, a stock market ...

, he was appointed by

Bill Walker Bill Walker may refer to: Australian rules football * Bill A. Walker (1886–1934), Australian rules footballer for Essendon * Bill Walker (Australian footballer, born 1883) (1883–1971), Australian rules footballer for Fitzroy * Bill J. V. Walke ...

, then-

governor of Alaska A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

, to head the

Alaska Department of Commerce, Community and Economic Development The Alaska Department of Commerce, Community and Economic Development (DCCED or DCED) is a department within the government of Alaska. The department contains the Control Office (AMCO).

. The appointment came about when the department's commissioner Chris Hladick was appointed by

Scott Pruitt Edward Scott Pruitt (born May 9, 1968) is an American lawyer, lobbyist and Republican politician from the state of Oklahoma. He served as the fourteenth Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from February 17, 2017, to J ...

, the administrator of the

Environmental Protection Agency A biophysical environment is a biotic and abiotic surrounding of an organism or population, and consequently includes the factors that have an influence in their survival, development, and evolution. A biophysical environment can vary in scale f ...

, to become the agency's Region 10 director. His successor Charlie Pierce took office as mayor on November 5; Navarre spent several days coordinating the transition with Pierce before starting his new job. Navarre serves on the Kenai Chamber of Commerce, North Peninsula Chamber of Commerce, and Peninsula Petroleum Club. He is also a member of the Municipal Advisory Gas Project Review Board, as well as the board of the Rasmuson Foundation.

Electoral history

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Navarre, Mike 1956 births 20th-century American politicians 21st-century American politicians Eastern Washington University alumni Living people Mayors of places in Alaska Democratic Party members of the Alaska House of Representatives People from Kenai, Alaska Politicians from Fairbanks, Alaska Politicians from Lansing, Michigan State cabinet secretaries of Alaska