Twin Falls welcomed new leadership Monday as the city council elected Jason Brown as mayor during its first meeting of 2026, marking a transition in the city's manager-council style government. WATCH | A changing of the guard at Twin Falls City Council Twin Falls Elects New Mayor Jason Brown in 2026 Leadership TransitionBefore passing the torch, outgoing Mayor Ruth Pierce conducted her final acts as mayor before stepping down to finish her term as a city council member. Twin Falls operates under one of three manager-council governments in Idaho, where voters elect city council members who then choose their mayor from among themselves."Ruth has always been a mentor to me," Jason Brown told Idaho News 6. "Even from the first time when I was working in the city, she really is, in my opinion, one of the great people in our community.Brown, who was the sole nominee for mayor, appeared moved as he outlined his vision during his nomination speech, emphasizing service as his central focus.He acknowledged the temporary nature of leadership roles while expressing his commitment to serving the community."And who knows, in two years it may not be my time and maybe somebody else's, but I took an opportunity to continue to serve in a different role in capacity, but as you could hear from my presentation, my speech, I think that's really what it's predicated on, is serving the people in the city to fall in the surrounding area," Brown said.After assuming the mayoral role, Brown nominated Councilor Craig Hawkins as vice-mayor. Hawkins, who brings six years of council experience to the position, praised the city's non-partisan governmental structure."And I like our form of government where the council, the mayor, and I really enjoy that it's a non-partisan position for all of us. We were able to avoid a lot of confusion and contention, and that sort of thing," Hawkins said.Hawkins told me he values the opportunity to interact with diverse segments of the community and continues to find growth in his role."For somebody my age and I get teased a lot, but to be able to continue to grow and learn and be able to serve in an immune way is a really good gig, so that's where the one I'm kind of coming from," Hawkins said.This story was initially reported by a journalist and has been, in part, converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy. ...read more read less