Motivated by concerns that revenue from a new Wasilla salestax

would not be spent wisely,[32] Palin was elected to the city

council of Wasilla in 1992. She won 530 votes to 310.[33][34]She

ran for reelection in 1995, winning by 413 votes to 185,[35]but

did not complete her second term on the city council becauseshe

was elected mayor in 1996. Throughout her tenure on the city

council and the rest of her career, Palin has been aregistered

Republican.

Wasillacity council

Motivated by concerns that revenue from a new Wasilla salestax would not be spent wisely,^[

^32]

Palin was elected to the city council ofWasilla in 1992. She won530 votes to 310.^[

^33]

^[

^34]

She ran for reelection in 1995, winning by 413 votes to185,^[

^35]

but did not complete her second term on the city council becauseshe was elected mayor in 1996. Throughout her tenure on the citycouncil and the rest of her career, Palin has been a registeredRepublican.^[

^36]

Mayor ofWasilla

Palin served two three-year terms^[

^37]

(1996-2002) as the mayor of Wasilla. In 1996,she defeated three-term incumbent mayor John Stein,^[

^38]

on a platform targeting wasteful spending and high taxes.^[

^14]

Stein says that Palin introduced abortion, gun rights, andterm limits ascampaign issues.^[

^39]

Although the election was a nonpartisanblanket primary, the state Republican Party ran advertisementson her behalf.^[

^39]

At the conclusion of Palin’s tenure as mayor in 2002, the city hadabout 6,300 residents.^[

^40]

In 2008, Wasilla’s mayor credited Palin’s tax cuts andinfrastructural improvements with helping the local economy,”br[inging] the big-box stores to Wasilla, … helping Wasilla growand draw 50,000 shoppers a day.”^[

^41]

The Boston Globequoted a local business owner as crediting Palin with making thetown “more of a community … It’s no longer a little strip townthat you can blow through in a heartbeat.”^[

^42]

First term

 

Shortly after taking office in October 1996, Palin consolidatedthe position of museum director and asked for updated resumes andresignation letters from “city department heads who had been loyalto Stein,”^[

^43]

including the police chief, public works director, financedirector, and librarian.^[

^44]

Palin stated this request was to find out their intentions andwhether they supported her.^[

^44]

She temporarily required department heads to get her approvalbefore talking to reporters, saying that they first needed tobecome acquainted with her administration’s policies.^[

^44]

She created the position of city administrator,^[

^39]

and reduced her own $68,000 salary by 10%, although by mid-1998this was reversed by the city council.^[

^45]

During her first year in office, Palin kept a jar with the namesof Wasilla residents on her desk. Once a week, she pulled a namefrom it and picked up the phone; she would ask: “How’s the citydoing?”^[

^46]

Using income generated by a 2% sales tax that was enacted beforeshe was elected to the city council,^[

^47]

Palin cut property taxes by75% and eliminated personal property and business inventorytaxes.^[

^38]

^[

^48]

Using municipal bonds, she made improvements to the roads andsewers, and increased funding to the Police Department.^[

^39]

She also oversaw new bike paths and procured funding forstorm-water treatment to protect freshwater resources.^[

^38]

At the same time, the city reduced spending on the town museum andstopped construction of a new library and city hall.^[

^38]

Palin ran for re-election against Stein in 1999 and won, with74% of the vote.^[

^49]

She was also elected president of the Alaska Conference ofMayors.^[

^50]

Palin appointed Charles Fannon to replace Stambaugh as police chief.^[

^37]

^[when?]

Secondterm

During her second term as mayor, Palin introduced a ballotmeasure proposing the construction of a municipal sports centerto be financed by a 0.5% sales tax increase.^[

^51]

The $14.7 million WasillaMulti-Use Sports Complex was built on time and under budget,but the city spent an additional $1.3 million because of aneminent domainlawsuit caused by the failure to obtain clear title to the propertybefore beginning construction.^[

^51]

The city’s long-term debt grew from about $1 million to $25 millionthrough voter-approved indebtedness of $15 million for the sportscomplex, $5.5 million for street projects, and $3 million for waterimprovement projects. A city council member defended the spendingincreases as being caused by the city’s growth during thattime.^[

^52]

Palin also joined with nearby communities in jointly hiring theAnchorage-based lobbying firm of Robertson, Monagle & Eastaughto lobby for federal funds. The firm secured nearly $8 million inearmarkedfunds for the Wasilla city government.^[

^53]

Earmarks included $500,000 for a youth shelter, $1.9 million for atransportation hub, and $900,000 for sewer repairs.^[

^54]

Term limits in theWasilla Municipal Code proscribe candidates from running for morethan two consecutive terms.^[

^37]