MISSOULA — The search for Missoula’s new mayor is finally over. After more than 20 votes late into Monday night, Jordan Hess will be Missoula’s new mayor.
It was a stalemate for most of the evening, with both Hess and Mike Nugent close in the vote.
After two hours of votes with no winner, council members left together through a literal back door, deliberating in an alley for more than an hour. When they returned, Nugent gave a tearful concession, saying: "Hess will be a great Mayor."
Hess is Missoula’s longest-serving council member and said after the vote that he believes that government can be a positive force in the lives of citizens.
Hess will be sworn in as the new mayor Tuesday as the state-mandated 30-day vacancy deadline is looming.
