Mayor and Mayor pro tem Chosen for the City of St. Joseph

St. Joseph, Michigan, November 19, 2025—Newly elected commissioners were sworn in and a Mayor and Mayor Pro Tem were chosen for the City of St. Joseph Wednesday afternoon at the organizational meeting of the new commission.

New Commissioner Lisa Vetne and returning Commissioners Michael Fernandez and Mike Sarola recited and signed their oaths of office prior to the Organizational Meeting. Commissioner Vetne received 1,428 votes, followed by Commissioner Fernandez with 1,241 votes, and will both serve four-year terms. Commissioner Sarola received 1,141 votes and will serve a two-year term.

After the swearing-in, the new Commission held their first meeting to choose the Mayor and Mayor pro tem to serve for the next two years. Commissioner Brook Thomas was appointed to continue her role as Mayor, with Commissioner Michael Fernandez appointed as Mayor pro tem.

“I am grateful to continue to serve the City of St. Joseph as Mayor,” said Thomas. “We’ve accomplished a lot of significant milestones for the community in recent years, and I am excited to continue to work on growing and improving our City.”

The St. Joseph City Commission typically meets every three weeks from November through April and the 2nd and 4th Monday each month the rest of the year. The next  Commission meeting will take place on December 8 at 6:00 p.m. at City Hall.