SOUTH PORTLAND — Longtime City Councilor Claude Morgan will serve as mayor in 2019.

Claude Morgan

He was elected unanimously by fellow councilors in a caucus Tuesday night to a position he held once before, in 2007. Morgan is entering the second year of his third nonconsecutive three-year term on the council.

Morgan said he is honored and grateful that his colleagues have faith and confidence in his ability to lead the seven-member council in the coming year.

Morgan, 57, lives in the Ferry Village neighborhood and holds the District 1 seat on the council. He is collections manager for Dirigo Federal Credit Union.

A largely administrative and ceremonial position, the mayor of Maine’s fourth-largest city steers the council’s agenda, runs council meetings and represents the city as a spokesman and dignitary at public events.

However, the council has faced significant issues lately, including an ongoing lawsuit by the Portland Pipe Line Corp. over the city’s Clear Skies ordinance and a yearlong battle over short-term rental regulations that city voters upheld last week at the polls.

Inauguration of the mayor and newly elected council and school board members is Dec. 3.


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