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As Martha Barragan officially concludes her yearlong term in leadership, East Palo Alto City Council in an unexpected move unanimously selected Council member Webster Lincoln as the new mayor at a special meeting on Tuesday.
Lincoln, who grew up in East Palo Alto, was elected to the council in November 2024.
For the at least the five years, the council has voted to promote the vice mayor to the mayor position, but following a year when contentious subjects like permit parking and inclusionary housing often took personal turns, council members decided to shake things up.
Although Barragan nominated Vice Mayor Mark Dinan as the new mayor early in the meeting, when the motion came down to vote, she and Lincoln abstained while Ruben Abrica and Carlos Romero rejected the proposal.
The decision follows a year when longstanding council members particularly clashed with newer ones. Tension arose once again when council members accused Dinan of making racist remarks in the past and mistreating members of the public.
“People have been shocked with the way Mr. Dinan has somewhat imperiously tried to impose ideas on other folks and alienated folks,” Romero said.
Dinan, who many residents spoke in support of, rejected claims that he has made racist remarks and said he was proud of improved park lighting systems, free access to YMCA and increased public programming at local nonprofit EPACenter – all projects he helped spearhead this year.
“The first move is to accuse me of being a racist, for doing something that was in the benefit of the community,” he said. “So, if there were people who were offended by things I’ve said online, I do apologize, things can be taken out of context online.”
After the motion failed, Dinan immediately nominated Lincoln as mayor, which all council members agreed upon.
Abrica, who served on East Palo Alto’s first city council in 1983, was also elected as mayor by Romero but “respectfully declined.” Instead, he accepted the position of vice mayor and was elevated to the position by a 4-1 vote, with Dinan rejecting the motion.
While the reorganization of the council did not follow previous patterns, members of the public thanked the newer council members for placing a greater emphasis on parking and code enforcement and also lauded the longstanding members, who have provided experience and expertise on resident life.
“I’m just struck by the congruency that Mr. Lincoln is a son of the city and Mr. Abrica is a co-founder of the city,” Maureen Larsson said during public comment. “And I’m hoping that with the energy and wisdom combined, that you will take us through 2026 in the directions we need to go.”
After her first year as mayor, members of the public also thanked Barragan for her ability to juggle contentious, late-night debates with her full-time teaching position and role as a mother. The former mayor often reflected on her career during debates, emphasizing “learning opportunities” with fellow council members and most recently imposing speaking time limits in an attempt to improve discussion flow during meetings.
Barragan was elected to the council in November 2022 and will conclude the current term at the end of next year.
“I just wanted to say thank you to each and every one of you, and even those of you that oppose [me],” she said.
Editor’s note: The story and headline were modified to reflect that Lincoln was nominated as mayor by his City Council colleagues.
