Shirley Drewenski elected acting Harvey mayor nearly 1 month after Christopher Clark's death

HARVEY, Ill. (WLS) -- The Harvey City Council elected Shirley Drewenski acting mayor on Monday night, nearly one month after Mayor Christopher Clark's death.

Clark died on Friday, Jan. 30. At the council's special meeting on Feb. 2, no nominee received the required four votes needed to take over the rest of his term.

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At the time, Harvey leadership was divided over two alderpersons nominated to take over: 1st Ward Ald. and Mayor Pro Tempore Drewenski, and 5th Ward Ald. Dominique Randle-El.

However, on Monday, Drewenski was elected following an unanimous vote.

She issued a statement, saying, "I accept this responsibility with humility and a deep sense of duty to the residents of Harvey. Our focus remains on stability, transparency, and continuing the work of city government while honoring the legacy of Mayor Christopher Clark.

This is a time for unity and respect. I am committed to working collaboratively with the City Council, city staff, and our community to ensure continuity in leadership and service. Above all, we will continue to keep Mayor Clark's family in our thoughts as we move forward together."

After being sworn in, Drewenski is required to either resign from her aldermanic seat, allowing the city council to appoint a replacement or leave the seat vacant for the remainder of the term until the next election, Harvey officials said.

Clark was in his second term as mayor of the south suburban city of a little more than 20,000 people. He had about two years left on his current term when he died.

Clark's passing also came as the town of Harvey has been dealing with a financial crisis. It is in debt by around $150 million and has been forced to lay off many city workers, including more than half of the fire department employees and over a third of the police.

It is a stressful time for the city's elected leaders, who have appealed to the federal and state governments for help.

They are now waiting on the General Assembly to approve Harvey's application to be declared "financially distressed." The designation would free up desperately needed emergency funding.