City of Columbia
Columbia City Clerk Wesley Hoeffkin, left, is shown swearing in Ward 3 Alderman Gene Ebersohl as acting mayor on Wednesday night at a special meeting streamed live on Facebook.
Editor’s note: This story was originally published by the Belleville News-Democrat, a news partner of St. Louis Public Radio.
It was a quiet and somber meeting that lasted only about four minutes.
On Wednesday night, Columbia City Council members elected former Ward 3 Alderman Gene Ebersohl as acting mayor.
Ebersohl replaces longtime Mayor Kevin Hutchinson, who resigned Monday after being indicted last week by a federal grand jury for allegedly lying to investigators about referral commissions he received on city insurance contracts.
Longtime Columbia Mayor Kevin Hutchinson has resigned, less than a week after a federal grand jury indicted him for allegedly lying to investigators about referral commissions he received on city insurance contracts.
City Administrator Doug Brimm announced the resignation in a news release emailed on Monday. It referenced a letter Hutchinson wrote to the Columbia City Council. It is with a heavy heart, but due to the recent events, I feel it is in the best interest of the City and my family for me to immediately resign my position as Mayor, the letter stated.
Last week, Hutchinson didn t respond to BND requests for comment through email or voicemail at City Hall. He was earning a $22,950 annual salary in the position, which is considered part time.
Updated: 3:49 PM CST March 1, 2021
COLUMBIA, Ill. Columbia, Illinois, Mayor Kevin Hutchinson resigned Monday, less than a week after he was indicted.
“It is with a heavy heart, but due to the recent events, I feel it is in the best interest of the City and my family for me to immediately resign my position as Mayor,” Hutchinson said in a news release.
Hutchinson has been the mayor of Columbia since 2005. He did not run for re-election in 2020, and his fourth term in office is set to expire on April 30. The news release said the city council is expected to hold a special meeting this week to elect an acting mayor from its ranks.
The mayor of Columbia, Illinois, has been indicted by a federal grand jury for allegedly lying to federal investigators. Mayor Kevin Hutchinson was charged with making f