Natalie Rogers Selected As City Of Santa Rosa's First Black Mayor

SANTA ROSA, CA — Santa Rosa City Council on Tuesday selected Natalie Rogers to serve as the City of Santa Rosa's mayor through 2024.

Toward the end of the Council meeting, after the declaration of the final results of the election were approved by Council, and final commentaries were made by outgoing Council Members Tom Schwedhelm and John Sawyer, the new council members were officially sworn in and convened to select amongst themselves, per the City Charter, a new mayor and vice mayor.

After 17 minutes of deliberation and four rounds of Council voting, the seven-member City Council selected Natalie Rogers to serve as mayor of Santa Rosa for a two-year term. She is the first Black mayor in the city's history.

“I’m grateful to my colleagues for appointing me to this position, for my constituents for electing me, and for all Santa Rosans for building a great community in the North Bay,” Mayor Rogers said. “I’m ready to roll up my sleeves, work with my partners in Council, and continue to find real solutions to the issues facing the City and region, such as prevalent homelessness, economic vibrancy and equity, sustainability, and housing for all.”

In her first order of business with the mayor’s gavel, Rogers called for the selection of the vice mayor. Council Member Dianna MacDonald was the sole nominee and was selected to the position by unanimous consent. MacDonald will serve in a one-year term through December 2023.

About Mayor Natalie Rogers

Rogers was elected to the Santa Rosa City Council in November 2020 as the first person ever to represent District 7 on the Council. Upon her election, her colleagues selected her to serve as the vice mayor for a one-year term. She became the first female African American vice mayor for the City of Santa Rosa. District 7 includes the neighborhoods within Southwest Santa Rosa.

According to her bio posted on the city's website, Rogers was raised by a maintenance worker mother and an Operating Engineer Local 3 stepfather living in public housing. Her stepsister died by suicide when she was 13 years old and it changed the course of her life. She has dedicated her career and education to helping people and serving the community.

Rogers is a mother of eight children and a licensed marriage and family therapist. She is very active in her children’s schools and her union, Engineers and Scientists of California Local 20. Rogers also volunteers her time with the North Bay Labor Council. She received her undergraduate degree from Sonoma State University. She works for the County of Sonoma, a local health provider, Kaiser Permanente, and operates her own private counseling business.