Jane Meyer Brahm, a Mercer Island resident since 1976, was appointed to the Mercer Island City Council on Tuesday night by a majority vote of the remaining six Council members. Meyer Brahm was selected in a special vote of the Council after former City Council member, Steve Litzow, resigned from the Council after his election in November to the Washington State Senate. Meyer Brahm will be the first woman to serve on the Council since 2003.

“I am very honored,” said Meyer Brahm. “There was such a field of qualified and distinguished people. I feel lucky to be selected.”

Meyer Brahm, a journalist, was the editor of the Mercer Island Reporter from 1994 until 2003 and worked as a writer and an assistant editor at the paper since 1986. The mother of two adult children, Meyer Brahm has been a longtime volunteer and advocate of Island organizations. She has volunteered in schools and served in leadership positions in the Boys & Girls Club, the Mercer Island Sister City Association and the Mercer Island Chamber of Commerce. She is now the editor of the new revised edition of the Island’s history book, “Mercer Island Heritage,” to be published by the Mercer Island Historical Society later this year.

She holds a Masters of Arts degree in English from the University of Tulsa, and an undergraduate degree from Creighton University in Omaha, Neb., where she also earned a teaching certification. She has studied abroad and speaks French.

Meyer Brahm’s tenure occurred at the Reporter during some turbulent times and has brought her experience in dealing with disparate views.

She and her staff covered the changing persona of the Town Center, the construction of the Community Center at Mercer View, the extensive remodeling of Island schools, and the social and economic changes in print and online media.

In her application, Meyer Brahm wrote that what she could bring to the Council is experience, knowledge and fair-mindedness.

In her written application to the Council, she outlined what she feels are the most immediate issues that need to be addressed. However, she notes that she does not have a specific list.

“The most important task is to deal with the budget cuts. Our task will be in maintaining what we’ve got left.”

She is one of just a handful of the 17 candidates who mentioned business. Beyond business, she indicated that the effects of tolling on Island residents is important to address, but noted, “An effective political and public strategy must be developed to deal with these issues.”

Meyer Brahm was elected in the fifth round of voting at the City Council meeting on Jan. 18. Seventeen Islanders had applied for the position, and 14 appeared before the Council on Feb. 13.

In addition to Meyer Brahm, those nominated by individual Council members on Jan. 18 included: Patti Darling, Tana Senn, Debbie Bertlin, Aaron Kornblum and Steve Marshall. The final two rounds of voting were a contest between Darling, a RN and emergency preparedness expert and former City Council candidate, and Meyer Brahm.

Meyer Brahm will be sworn in at the regular City Council meeting on Feb. 7.