March gavels in hope as Henderson mayor

Building upon success of term-limited Hafen

Henderson Mayor Debra March was sworn in Tuesday night along with three other aldermen, making her the city’s second female mayor.

She replaces term-limited Mayor Andy Hafen, who handed her a personalized gavel before stepping aside. City Councilman John Marz and Municipal Court Judge Rodney T. Burr were also sworn in.

“What an honor it is for me to be here tonight,” March, 63, said. “No one works harder than this city council. I think folks take it for granted, but we do it because we love this city.”

March joins Lorna Kesterson, who served from 1985 to 1993, as Henderson’s only woman mayors.

With Tuesday’s ceremony over, March discussed the three finalists for the Ward 2 appointment. The Henderson City Council unanimously voted to appoint Dan Shaw, the president and CEO of Rustler Investments and the Clark County Planning Commission’s chairman. As a Henderson council member, Shaw will have to resign his Clark County Planning Commission post.

Also during the meeting, Councilman Dan Stewart was named mayor pro tem.

March said she’s optimistic about the future. “I’m looking forward to the opportunity to build on some wonderful strengths that the city already has,” March said. “We have a great community and recent surveys show that our citizens are satisfied with our quality of life, but I want to take Henderson to the next level.”

March joined the council in 2009 after heading the Lied Institute of Real Estate Studies at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. During her council tenure, March led the Southern Nevada Strong regional planning effort and served as Regional Transportation vice chairwoman.

She was elected to the council in 2011 and re-elected in 2015.

In April, March won the mayoral primary with more than 50 percent of the votes. To fulfill her campaign promise to create a more transparent administration, March said she will hold monthly town hall meetings around Henderson. She also introduced her 100-day plan, which will focus on community safety, economic development, transparency, education and quality of life.

The mayor serves a four-year term and is paid $61,276 per year.

Contact Sandy Lopez at slopez@ reviewjournal.com or 702-383-4686. Follow @Journalismsandy on Twitter.

Gabriella Angotti-jones Las Vegas Review-journal New Henderson Mayor Debra March, face to camera, hugs Sabrina Mercadante after Mercadante swore her in Tuesday at Henderson City Hall.