Richard Mystrom (born 1944) is an American politician, businessman, and author who served as the 32nd mayor of the Municipality of Anchorage from 1994 to 2000. He is a member of the

Republican party Republican Party is a name used by many political parties around the world, though the term most commonly refers to the United States' Republican Party. Republican Party may also refer to: Africa *Republican Party (Liberia) * Republican Part ...

Early life and education

Mystrom was born in

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...

in 1944 and attended the

University of Colorado Boulder The University of Colorado Boulder (CU Boulder, CU, or Colorado) is a public research university in Boulder, Colorado. Founded in 1876, five months before Colorado became a state, it is the flagship university of the University of Colorado syst ...

. In 1964, he was diagnosed with

Type 1 diabetes Type 1 diabetes (T1D), formerly known as juvenile diabetes, is an autoimmune disease that originates when cells that make insulin (beta cells) are destroyed by the immune system. Insulin is a hormone required for the cells to use blood sugar for ...

. He moved to

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., ...

in 1972.

Career

In 1975, Mystrom established Mystrom/Beck Advertising. In 1982, he received the Small Business Person of the Year Award from President

Ronald Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan ( ; February 6, 1911June 5, 2004) was an American politician, actor, and union leader who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He also served as the 33rd governor of California from 1967 ...

. In 1990, he sold his advertising business, which was later merged into the Nerland Agency. Mystrom was elected to the Anchorage Assembly in 1979, serving until 1985. In 1994, he defeated Democrat

Mark Begich Mark Peter Begich ( ; born March 30, 1962) is an American politician who served as a United States senator from Alaska from 2009 to 2015. A member of the Democratic Party, he previously served as Mayor of Anchorage from 2003 to 2009. Born in An ...

to succeed

Tom Fink Thomas A. Fink (August 26, 1928 – June 4, 2021) was an American Republican politician from Alaska. He was Mayor of Anchorage from 1987 to 1994 and Speaker of the Alaska House of Representatives from 1973 to 1975. He was also a member of the F ...

as mayor of Anchorage. In 1997, he withstood a challenge from Fink, a fellow Republican. Mystrom was widely considered the more moderate of the two Republican candidates. In office, Mystrom emphasized crime reduction and championed the "City of Lights" beautification program, encouraging residents and employers to ornament their homes and businesses with decorative lights during Anchorage's dark winter. In the 2003 election, he challenged incumbent Republican mayor

George Wuerch George Poe Wuerch (born 1936) is an American politician and a member of the Republican Party. He served as mayor of Anchorage, Alaska from 2000 to 2003. In the 2003 mayoral election, he was defeated for reelection by former city assemblyman Ma ...

in a three-way race. Begich, who had unsuccessfully faced Wuerch in 2000, was elected. Mystrom is a longtime advocate of bringing the

Winter Olympic Games The Winter Olympic Games (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques d'hiver) is a major international multi-sport event held once every four years for sports practiced on snow and ice. The first Winter Olympic Games, the 1924 Winter Olympics, were he ...

to Anchorage, and has chaired several committees to that end. Anchorage was twice the U.S. candidate for these Games (

1992 File:1992 Events Collage V1.png, From left, clockwise: 1992 Los Angeles riots, Riots break out across Los Angeles, California after the Police brutality, police beating of Rodney King; El Al Flight 1862 crashes into a residential apartment buildi ...

and

1994 File:1994 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1994 Winter Olympics are held in Lillehammer, Norway; The Kaiser Permanente building after the 1994 Northridge earthquake; A model of the MS Estonia, which Sinking of the MS Estonia, sank in ...

Personal life

He has two sons, Nick and Richard, and a daughter, Jennifer, with his former wife, Mary.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Mystrom, Rick 1943 births 20th-century mayors of places in Alaska Alaska Republicans Anchorage Assembly members Businesspeople from Anchorage, Alaska Businesspeople from Minnesota American advertising executives Date of birth missing (living people) Living people Mayors of Anchorage, Alaska