Canton Mayor-elect William V. Sherer II to be sworn into office on Dec. 28

CANTON − Canton's new mayor will take his oath of office on Dec. 28.

William V. Sherer II, a Democrat who captured 68% of the vote during the Nov. 7 election, will be sworn into office at 3 p.m. Dec. 28 in City Hall's council chambers at 218 Cleveland Ave. SW.

Stark County Common Pleas Judge Taryn Heath will administer the oath to Sherer, who will be Canton's 72nd mayor.

He will succeed Mayor Thomas Bernabei, who chose not to seek reelection to his third term. As the mayor, Sherer will be responsible for managing city operations and Canton's $334 million annual budget. His annual salary will be $131,935.

Sherer, who has served as Canton council president since December 2018, on Wednesday said he has been meeting with department heads and other elected and appointed city officials to learn about the issues facing Canton so he can be ready on Jan. 1.

He plans to retain Bernabei's current cabinet members, which include Safety Director Andrea Perry, Service Director John Highman Jr., Finance Director Mark Crouse and Economic Development Director Christopher Hardesty.

"Mayor Bernabei has surrounded himself with a very strong group of young professionals and we will continue to move Canton forward with that very talented group," Sherer said. "You win with people and Canton is lucky to have such a great team in place to help with a smooth transition."

Sherer also plans to keep Bernabei's support staff, including administrative assistant Tammy Diener and staff assistant Wendy Heslink.

This article originally appeared on The Repository: Canton Mayor-elect William V. Sherer II to be sworn in, retains staff