First Woman, Gay to Become Anchorage Mayor Following Scandal

Austin Quinn-Davidson will become Anchorage's first woman and openly gay mayor on Friday when she takes over for Ethan Berkowitz, who resigned last week for partaking in a "consensual, inappropriate messaging relationship" with a local TV anchor.

Quinn-Davidson, 40, an attorney, will become the acting mayor after having been chosen as the leader of the Assembly of Alaska's largest city on Friday, replacing Felix Rivera, who was ousted in a reorganization meeting and vote. Anchorage's charter calls for the chair of the Assembly to become mayor in case of a vacancy.

Berkowitz, the top elected Democrat in Alaska, resigned on Oct. 13 after denying allegations on Facebook by Maria Athens, an anchor with the virtual Fox/ABC affiliate in Anchorage Us KTBY, that he had posted nude photos of himself on an underage website.

However, he stepped down after disclosing that he was involved in an inappropriate "messaging" relationship with Athens, who was arrested on Oct. 9 — the day she submitted the Facebook post — for trespassing at the television station that told her not to return there.

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