The Eugene City Council elected David Kelly as city council president for 2002 on Monday night.
The change took effect immediately.
Kelly, who represents Ward 3, which includes the University, said he will receive no more power, but will have a few more formal responsibilities, including conducting meetings.
“The responsibility of the president can vary a lot depending on circumstances,” said Kelly, who served as council vice president last year. “Sometimes the mayor is too busy to attend an event, and sometimes when he feels the city still needs a presence, he’ll ask the city council president to be there.”
The council also elected Gary Papé, Ward 5, vice president on Monday night.
Betty Taylor, Ward 2, served as city council president last year.
The filing deadline for city council elections is March 5, and Kelly has already declared his intention to run for re-election. Gary Rayor, Ward 4, will not run for election, because the city’s redrawing of its ward boundaries put him in Ward 1 with Bonny Bettman, and Bettman’s term will not expire for another two years. The terms of Papé and Pat Farr, Ward 6, will expire this spring, and neither has declared their candidacy.