Kate Gallego was in her mid-30s, and her life, on paper at least, seemed to be going perfectly: she was serving on the Phoenix city council, married to a congressman, and newly pregnant after having tried for some time. But within a matter of months, as she recalls, “ my life just fell upside down all at once.”
Her marriage broke up, and her mother was diagnosed with late-stage cancer. Meanwhile, her dream job, the mayor of Phoenix, unexpectedly became available when the incumbent resigned to run for another office. At first, she was convinced the timing wasn’t right. But with the encouragement of her supporters (and once her son started to sleep through the night), she came to understand that timing is never perfect, and sometimes you just need to jump at an opportunity.
She ran and won that special election in 2019 at the age of 37. Mayor Kate Gallego, now in her third and final term, shares with host Karen Finerman what she is doing to future-proof her city, her approach to raising her son (and what he’s taught her), and how her mother’s illness motivated her to work to make life better for residents of Phoenix.
💡 In this episode:
- Despite being a natural introvert, she’s learned to speak up and work a room
- Why having an MBA has served her well as mayor
- What role Phoenix is playing to protect national security and help your smartphones run safely
- How she juggles raising her son with her ex-husband, who is now a U.S. senator
- The steps the city of Phoenix is taking to make the city more livable in the heat
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