Cool, confident deputy mayor takes charge during troubling times

[MindPilot]

Councilwoman Toni Atkins did such a good job last week as acting mayor of San Diego that her colleagues decided yesterday that she deserved an encore.

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"Toni is deputy mayor tonight because she's earned the respect of her colleagues," said Kehoe, now a Democratic state senator. "I'm not surprised at all. I'm very proud of her. She is very deserving."

In assuming the job of deputy mayor during this unusual time when there is no mayor, Atkins, 42, becomes the first openly gay politician to lead the nation's seventh-largest city.

http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/metro/20050726-9999-1m26deputy.html