Mike Padilla | |
|---|---|
| Mayor of Topeka | |
| Assumed office January 4, 2022 | |
| Preceded by | Michelle De La Isla |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1948or1949(age 75–76) Topeka,Kansas,U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Education | Washburn University (BA) |
Michael Padilla (born 1948/1949) [1] is an American politician who is the mayor of Topeka,Kansas,serving since January 2022. Prior to becoming mayor,Padilla was a member of the Topeka Police Department for 33 years and served one term on Topeka's city council.
Padilla is a second-generation Mexican American. [2] He graduated from Hayden High School and Washburn University. He worked for Adams Business Forms but left the job in 1970 to become a police officer for Topeka's police department. [3]
In 2000,Padilla,then a police captain,ran for sheriff of Shawnee County as a Democrat. He won the Democratic Party's primary election in August, [4] but lost the November general election to the incumbent,Republican Richard Barta. Padilla retired from the Topeka Police Department in 2003 at the rank of major. [3] [2]
Padilla was elected to Topeka's city council to represent District 5 in 2017. [5] In January 2021,the members of the Topeka City Council elected Padilla as deputy mayor. [6] After mayor Michelle De La Isla decided not to run for reelection in 2021,Padilla announced his candidacy for mayor. [2] Padilla defeated Leo Cangiani in the non-partisan election with 60.9% of the vote (9,209 to 5,862) on November 2. [5] He was sworn in as mayor on January 4,2022. [7]