Katharine Sarah Gallego (née Widland, born October 21, 1981) is an American politician serving as the 62nd mayor of

Phoenix, Arizona Phoenix ( ; nv, Hoozdo; es, Fénix or , yuf-x-wal, Banyà:nyuwá) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities and towns in Arizona#List of cities and towns, most populous city of the U.S. state of Arizona, with 1 ...

since 2019. A member of the

Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...

, she previously served on the

Phoenix City Council The Phoenix City Council is the governing body of the city of Phoenix, Arizona. The council is made up of nine members, including a mayor and eight council members representing individual districts. While the mayor is elected in a citywide electi ...

from 2014 to 2018.

Early life and education

Gallego grew up in

Albuquerque, New Mexico Albuquerque ( ; ), ; kee, Arawageeki; tow, Vakêêke; zun, Alo:ke:k'ya; apj, Gołgéeki'yé. abbreviated ABQ, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of New Mexico. Its nicknames, The Duke City and Burque, both reference its founding in ...

. Her parents are attorneys who moved to Albuquerque from

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

after the 1979 Chicago blizzard. She grew up with

asthma Asthma is a long-term inflammatory disease of the airways of the lungs. It is characterized by variable and recurring symptoms, reversible airflow obstruction, and easily triggered bronchospasms. Symptoms include episodes of wheezing, cou ...

, which made air quality important to her. Gallego graduated from

Albuquerque Academy Albuquerque Academy is an independent, co-educational day school for grades 6-12 located in Albuquerque, New Mexico, United States. It is accredited by the Independent Schools Association of the Southwest

, where she served as student body vice president. She earned a

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Middle Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six ...

in environmental studies from

Harvard College Harvard College is the undergraduate college of Harvard University, an Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636, Harvard College is the original school of Harvard University, the oldest institution of higher lea ...

and a

Master of Business Administration A Master of Business Administration (MBA; also Master's in Business Administration) is a postgraduate degree focused on business administration. The core courses in an MBA program cover various areas of business administration such as accounti ...

from the

Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania ( ; also known as Wharton Business School, the Wharton School, Penn Wharton, and Wharton) is the business school of the University of Pennsylvania, a Private university, private Ivy League rese ...

Political career

Gallego worked for the

Arizona Democratic Party The Arizona Democratic Party is the affiliate of the Democratic Party in the U.S. state of Arizona. Its headquarters are in Phoenix. Party organization The Arizona Democratic Party is organized into three parts: the state committee, the executive ...

, the Arizona Office of Tourism, as well as on economic development and strategic planning for the

Salt River Project The Salt River Project (SRP) is the umbrella name for two separate entities: the Salt River Project Agricultural Improvement and Power District, an agency of the state of Arizona that serves as an electrical utility for the Phoenix metropolitan a ...

. On November 5, 2013, Gallego was elected to the

for the 8th district; she was reelected in 2017. With

Greg Stanton Gregory John Stanton (born March 8, 1970) is an American lawyer and politician who is the U.S. representative from . A Democratic Party (United States), Democrat, he was Mayor of Phoenix, mayor of Phoenix, Arizona. Stanton was on the Phoenix Cit ...

, the Mayor of Phoenix, running for the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the Lower house, lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States Senate, Senate being ...

in the 2018 elections, Gallego announced she would run in a

special election A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, a bye-election in Ireland, a bypoll in India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-larges ...

to succeed him. She resigned from the city council effective August 7, 2018.

First and second term election results

The city of Phoenix has nonpartisan mayoral elections. In the 2018 special election, Kate Gallego and Daniel Valenzuela advanced to a runoff in November of 2018. They defeated Moses Sanchez and Nicholas Sarwark. Although the election was nonpartisan, both candidates were Democrats. Previously on the city council, they had voted similarly. Kate Gallego defeated Daniel Valenzuela in the special general runoff election for the mayor of Phoenix in 2019. She received 58.6% of votes. She assumed office on March 21, 2019. Gallego became the first woman elected to the office in more than three decades. She is only the second female mayor in Phoenix and one of the youngest big city mayors in the United States. She was backed by progressives, labor unions, the ''Arizona Republic'' editorial board, and liberal advocacy organizations. Examples of these include Emily's List, Sierra Club, and the Planned Parenthood Advocates of Arizona. In 2020 Kate Gallego ran for reelection. In November 2020, she was returned to office with the highest number of votes cast in a mayoral candidate in Phoenix. Merissa Hamilton, a Libertarian write in candidate, was Gallego's closest opponent. Hamilton received 26.29% of votes. Gallego won the election receiving 60.7% of the votes.

Personal life

Gallego is Jewish, celebrating her bat mitzvah in Albuquerque. While attending Harvard, Kate met

Ruben Gallego Rubén Marinelarena Gallego (; born November 20, 1979) is an American politician and U.S. Marine combat veteran, having served and deployed as a USMCR Corporal during Operation Iraqi Freedom, who is the U.S. Representative for Arizona's 7th con ...

at a charity auction following the

September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks, commonly known as 9/11, were four coordinated suicide terrorist attacks carried out by al-Qaeda against the United States on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. That morning, nineteen terrorists hijacked four commercia ...

. They moved to Phoenix in 2004, and married in 2010. The couple announced their divorce in 2016, prior to the birth of their child, Michael.

Climate change

Under Gallego's leadership, Phoenix has taken important steps to counter the

urban heat island An urban heat island (UHI) is an urban or metropolitan area that is significantly warmer than its surrounding rural areas due to human activities. The temperature difference is usually larger at night than during the day, and is most apparen ...

effects which are aggravated by

climate change In common usage, climate change describes global warming—the ongoing increase in global average temperature—and its effects on Earth's climate system. Climate change in a broader sense also includes previous long-term changes to E ...

. Increasing temperatures in the Phoenix area are projected to cost billions of dollars per year. Among the steps being taken are the creation of "cool corridors" through the planting of desert-adapted trees, and the use of lighter-colored sidewalks and streets, particularly in areas with high pedestrian traffic and little shade. Where to plant the trees is determined in part based on “tree equity”. The city uses an interactive tool from the nonprofit

American Forests American Forests is a 501(c)(3) non-profit conservation organization, established in 1875, and dedicated to protecting and restoring healthy forest ecosystems. The current headquarters are in Washington, D.C. Activities The mission of American ...

, that grades shade in neighborhoods based on satellite images. Phoenix has also opened one of the first city heat mitigation offices in the United States. Directed by David Hondula, it will support climate mitigation in Phoenix and share strategies with individuals and cities worldwide.

Police reform

The police department of Phoenix recorded shooting 44 people in 2018, spurring a reassessment from the community on police accountability. In 2020, Mayor Kate Gallego suggested a plan for a citizens review board that would balance the police department interests and community interests. City councilman Carlos Garcia, who ran on further police accountability, created a plan focused on empowering a citizens review board from input of the community and groups such as Puente Human Rights and Poder in Action. The city council passed Garcia's model for a review board when Mayor Kate Gallego and vice mayor Betty Guardados switched their vote from Gallego's model to the Garcia model 5-4 vote. Established in 2021 the citizen review board is part of a new city department named Office of Accountability and Transparency (OAT). The board has powers to investigate police misconduct, in addition to any police department investigation. The office has a system for anonymous tips and can investigate information on the misconduct by police. A community board of citizens and can investigate alongside police investigations of misconduct. The city manager may also start investigations of any police misconduct events. On March 15 of every year the Office of Accountability and Transparency (OAT) releases an annual report on all investigations the department has undergone previously. A Department of Justice investigation was initiated in August 2021 looking into if the police used excessive force on protestors and sweeping of homeless people and their property. The investigation plans to look at current police practices and its handling of the disabled. Mayor Kate Gallego tweeted about the event welcoming the investigation and that police reform was an important issue when she took office.

Phoenix budget

The budget of Phoenix Arizona can be seen throug
FundPHX
an online budget software that allows citizens to see how the 2022-2023 $1.4 billion-dollar general fund budget is spent. As per the city of Phoenix charter, the city budget must be balanced. In addition, anyone can create a budget with the tool and submit their policy suggestion to the city council. The program is said to allow for more transparency and citizen input in the budgeting process. An individual's suggested budget can also be submitted to the office of Budget and Research to give the information to the city council.

References

External links

Official profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gallego, Kate 1980s births 21st-century American politicians 21st-century American women politicians Arizona city council members Jewish mayors of places in the United States Harvard College alumni Living people Mayors of Phoenix, Arizona Jewish American people in Arizona politics Politicians from Albuquerque, New Mexico Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania alumni Women city councillors in Arizona Women mayors of places in Arizona Arizona Democrats 21st-century American Jews