Fox Throws Support to Parks for Mayor

City Councilman Andy Fox said he will vote in favor of rival Linda Parks to become the city’s next mayor, virtually guaranteeing her ascension to the post at the council’s reorganization meeting Tuesday.

Fox and Parks, bitter political rivals who rarely agree on major issues, saw their animosity intensify during the recent election after Parks endorsed three candidates who had targeted Fox for defeat. Fox, meanwhile, promoted himself as a leader for slow growth in the city during his reelection campaign, an issue typically associated with Parks and her supporters.

Fox, however, said last week that he will set aside their differences and endorse Parks as mayor, as part of a traditional council rotation. Parks currently serves as mayor pro tem, filling in for Mayor Michael Markey when he is unavailable.

“At this point, I would not see a reason why we would not continue the orderly transition from mayor pro tem to mayor,” said Fox, who campaigned on a platform of ending the infighting that has marked recent council debates.

The endorsement by Fox virtually guarantees that Parks will become the next mayor, as she needs only three votes of the five members on the council to take the post. In addition to her own vote and Fox’s pledge, Parks has the support of Councilman-elect Dan Del Campo, who ran on the same ticket as Parks in 1996.

Additionally, Councilman-elect Dennis Gillette, considered a philosophical ally of Fox, has said that, while he has made no formal decision, he is inclined to endorse Parks as a gesture of goodwill. Markey, whose term ends Tuesday night, has not yet announced whom he will support to replace him.

The selections of mayor and mayor pro tem will come after the city clerk issues the oath of office to newly elected and reelected council members.