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The San Antonio City Council voted on Thursday to appoint Michael Gallagher, a former District 10 city council member, to the interim District 10 council seat left open by Clayton Perry’s leave of absence, effective immediately.
Gallagher began his first term on the council through an appointment in 2014 after the former District 10 council member resigned. He then went unopposed in a 2014 special election — leading the council to cancel the election and grant him the seat. He won re-election in 2015, and then declined to run again in 2017.
When District 6 Councilmember Melissa Cabello Havrda asked him about his top priorities for District 10, Gallagher said security was first.
“Number one, of course, has to be our security,” he said. “And with that, we have to have the support of our police and fire departments. We have to make sure that they are supported in such a manner that they can handle the problems [and] the issues that are brought before them.”
Gallagher also said that infrastructure, which had been an important issue for Perry, is also at the top of that list.
“We’ve gotta do whatever we can to keep the process going to make sure that we upgrade and we repair the infrastructure that we have,” he said.
His third priority for the district was code enforcement. “Let’s get some more code enforcement officers out there, and let’s do what we can to fund city code enforcement so that we really keep those neighborhoods at a higher level,” Gallagher said.
During his official statement on Wednesday morning, Gallagher said he was also focused on continuity. In his interview on Thursday, he made clear that the District 10 staff would have continuity as well, and he committed to retaining the entire staff.
Gallagher added that he was prepared to serve the entire term through June if necessary, but would not try to stay in the seat for any longer than that.
“For the May election, I will not be a candidate,” he said.
Gallagher is the president of both the Northeast Neighborhood Alliance and the Northern Hills Homeowner Association. He has served in the U.S. Air Force, the Pentagon, and the White House during the Reagan administration.
The council vote for his appointment was unanimous.
Perry’s leave of absence followed his involvement in an alleged hit-and-run where he appeared to be inebriated on police body camera footage. Perry has been charged with one count of failing to stop and exchange information and one count of DWI.
Gallagher will stay in the position until Perry returns or the term ends next June, whichever comes first.