Gunderson Succeeds Campbell as Mayor

Councilman Don Gunderson has replaced Roger Campbell as Fillmore’s mayor in an unusual, if expected, move.

The City Council on Tuesday night replaced Campbell before the end of what he believed to be a two-year term.

However, a majority of council members said last month that they had originally intended Campbell to serve only one year when he was appointed in 1995 so that his two-year mayoral term would end in the same year as council elections, which last occurred in November.

Campbell, who is serving his fourth term on the council, disagreed, but voted Tuesday with his fellow members to elect Gunderson as mayor. Gunderson will serve until November 1998 in the largely ceremonial post.

Evaristo Barajas, first elected to the council in November, was elected mayor pro tem.

Gunderson, a 12-year Fillmore resident, is serving his second council term, which expires in November 1998.

Gunderson, 62, principal engineer with a defense contractor, said he will emphasize public safety and economic development during his tenure.

“I’m hoping we can land some kind of business in town that’s other than a service or retail business,” he said. “We’ve lost some manufacturing-type jobs in the town that employed a number of people.”

However, for the most part, Gunderson expects little change.

“Except for title, the mayor has no duties or privileges over and above anybody else on the City Council,” he said.