DEPOE BAY, Ore. — In a stunning shake-up of local government, the popular mayor of Whale Capitol USA has resigned and been replaced by a city councilor who originally entered office with only 16 write-in votes.

Mayor Kathy Short, citing a desire to focus on family and personal health after years of civic service, shocked the city council in December by quitting halfway through her third and final term. Her abdication triggered a Jan. 6 debate over her replacement, with town elders voting 6-0 to make Valerie Sovern the city’s 16th mayor.

A retired marketing whiz, Sovern joined the town council in Jan. 2023 after quietly engineering a 16-vote write-in win for Pos. 5 in the Nov. general election. The seat was uncontested, drawing 87 write-in candidates ranging from Depoe Bay businesswoman Clary Grant, runner-up with 3 votes, to TV psychotherapist Dr. Phil, with 1.

In a town where civic participation is already thin and half the city council is unelected, the abrupt shift in leadership may feel like a toss of the dice. But Sovern asserted she is up to the task, which includes fixing failed or missing audits, overhauling a timeworn sewer system and fighting a multi-million-dollar lawsuit over previous planning decisions.

“The fact is I’ve got 25 years here, the background and understanding,” she said as colleagues wondered whether to appoint her or retain her as council president until a new mayor is elected. “Longevity and experience in the job are important. Of course, I don’t have anything else going on.”

Who is Valerie Sovern? An insider described her as a “critical thinker who doesn’t get on anybody’s bandwagon,” noting she has “pushed on finances” and “pushed-back on administration.” In a revealing 2019 interview, Sovern upbraided Depoe Bay government as secretive and chummy when meeting records were not published.

“They (the city council) need to be transparent, and they’re anything but that,” she told a reporter. “If you don’t belong to the club in town, you’re not on the inside.”

Sovern, whose sudden resignation in 2024 after a family loss was overlooked by the city council, will be sworn in Tuesday, Jan. 20 at 6 p.m. We wish the wind at Valerie Sovern’s back as she faces a daunting task, and hope residents contemplate how fragile democracy can be in Depoe Bay where low turnout, write-in candidates, and quiet procedural moves can have outsized consequences.

The Mayors of Depoe Bay

Since its incorporation in Dec. 1973, Depoe Bay has had 15 different individuals serve as mayor, with Valerie Sovern slated to become the 16th next Tuesday.

Several have served multiple, non-consecutive terms, most notably Robert Jackson, who held the office during four separate periods across three decades. The chronological list of Depoe Bay mayors includes:

Jean Quinn (1975–1976)

Robert Jackson (1977–1978, 1981–1983, 1991–1992, 1997–1998)

William Wahl (1979–1983)

James McNurlin (1983–1986)

Donald Wisniewski (1987–1991)

Ron Nairn (1993–1996)

Gary Hoagland (1999–2000)

John Steen (2001–2002)

Bruce Silver (2003–2004)

Jim White (2005–2010) — The first Black mayor of Depoe Bay and second in Oregon

Carol Connors (2011–2012)

A.J. Mattila (2013–2016)

Barbara Leff (2017–2018)

Robert Gambino (2019–2020)

Kathy Short (2021–2025) — Resigned in Dec. 2025

Valerie Sovern (2026–Present) — Appointed in Jan. 2026 following Kathy Short’s resignation