The brother of Auburn Mayor Normand Guay was inaugurated Monday as Lewiston mayor.
LEWISTON – Call him, “His Honor.”
With a shaky voice, Lionel Guay swore his oath to the city of Lewiston Monday and became its mayor.
“If I sound nervous, it’s because I am,” said Guay, beginning his inaugural address. “I am humbled by the fact that you chose me as your mayor.”
The 62-year-old accountant and long-time civic leader assumed the office before a crowd of more than 300 people at the Lewiston Middle School.
Joining Guay in taking their oaths were members of the City Council and the School Committee. Councilor Renee Bernier was re-elected to her role as council president and its representative to the school board.
Council newcomers included Stavros Mendros from Ward 1 and Robert Connors, from Ward 5. Newly elected to the School Committee were Leah Poulin, at-large, and Kay Theberge from Ward 1.
However, it was the mayor’s role that took center stage, literally.
The ceremony began with Mayor Larry Raymond in his last moments in office. He was positioned in a high-backed chair behind a desk decorated with the city’s seal.
The night was Raymond’s chance to bid farewell. His address was the evening’s first speech.
He thanked councilors, administrators and city staffers. He spoke of successes made during his two-year tenure, such as development in the downtown and fights to keep taxes from climbing.
He also spoke of his “desire to place the role of the mayor on the level dictated by the (city’s) charter: part-time and ceremonial.”
Raymond’s term was characterized by some as that of an absentee mayor. He came under particular fire in January 2003, when he vacationed in Florida as white supremacists and their opponents converged on Lewiston.
“As I look back, there is nothing I would change,” Raymond said.
Guay, a friend of Raymond’s, said Monday he will be a more visible figure in office. His role as a figurehead for the city is what gives him any power, he said.
In his address, Guay said he wants to continue to hold down city spending while providing the best possible education for the city’s children.
He talked of continuing economic development work and improving the city’s reputation.
“The negative perception that others have concerning Lewiston has no basis, but we must learn that we need to take pride in ourselves before we can expect others to have pride in us,” he said.
In the ovation that followed his oath, the first person to stand was his brother, Normand, the mayor of Auburn.
“I think I am as excited for my brother as I was the night I was inaugurated,” Normand Guay said. “I just wish my mother could have been here.”
Normand, who is four years younger, helped talk his brother into running for the office. The two hope to parlay their situation – as brother mayors of sister cities – into new notoriety for the Lewiston and Auburn.
Lionel Guay said he is ready to begin. His election with a sweeping 76 percent of the vote will make it easier, he said.
“It makes me feel like the people have confidence in me,” the new mayor said.
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