Municipal League taps new president

Cave City mayor gets job, says next-generation leadership will be his focus

Cave City Mayor Jonas Anderson has been elected president of the Arkansas Municipal League for 20232024.

Anderson is among a new slate of officers elected Friday, the last day of the threeday annual Arkansas Municipal League Conference, which was held at the Little Rock Marriott and Statehouse Convention Center as well as virtually. Overall attendance, in-person and online, was about 1,000, according to Arkansas Municipal League officials.

Anderson said in a speech that the top of his priority list is recruiting the next generation of local government leaders and public servants.

“As you know, bringing in younger people, that’s the only way we can keep this going,” said Anderson, who turned 40 on Thursday.

Anderson, a life-long resident of Cave City, became a member of its City Council in 2010. On July 25, 2017, he was sworn in as Cave City mayor. According to his mayoral biography on the city’s website, his family has lived in the Cave City area since the 1860’s.

Cave City is on the northern Independence County and southern Sharp County border in north-central Arkansas, about 14 miles from Batesville.

Anderson, who was elected first vice president for 2022-23, was elevated to the presidency to serve out the term left vacant by Virginia Young, who had been elected president at the 88th annual convention in June 2022. Young left office in January after her defeat as Sherwood mayor in a December 2022 runoff election.

Other Arkansas Municipal League officers elected for 2023-2024 on Friday were Magnolia Mayor Parnell Vann, first vice president; Brookland Mayor Kenneth Jones, District 1 vice president; Clinton Mayor Richard McCormac, District 2 vice president; Eureka Springs Mayor Robert “Butch” Berry, District 3 vice president; and Crossett City Council member C.T. Foster, District 4 vice president.

The convention covered a range of topics, including abating the opioid epidemic, an overview of the Americans with Disabilities Act, understanding and mitigating cybersecurity threats, and a review of legislation affecting municipalities that passed during the 94th General Assembly earlier this year. The convention also included three hours of continuing education as part of the League’s voluntary certification program for municipal officials and personnel.

The Arkansas Municipal League, founded in 1934, is an advocate for Arkansas cities and towns.