Bruce Botelho - Career

Career

The first job out of law school for Bruce was in the Alaska Attorney General’s office in 1976. He then began his political career in 1983 when he was elected to the City and Borough of Juneau assembly. He was elected as mayor of Juneau in October 1988, serving until October 1991. He served as deputy attorney general for Alaska beginning in 1992. On January 12, 1994 he was appointed by Governor Walter J. Hickel as Attorney General and confirmed by the Alaska Legislature that May. In December 1994, Governor Hickel was succeeded by Tony Knowles, who asked Botelho to continue in office. He served until December 2002. In October 2003, he was elected to his second term as mayor of Juneau. Botelho was re-elected in October 2006 and again in October 2009. Botelho is a member of the Tongass Futures Roundtable, serves on the Alaska Rural Justice and Law Enforcement Commission, is a director of the Alaska Municipal League and president of the Alaska Conference of Mayors. He is a former trustee of the Alaska Permanent Fund, an original trustee of the Alaska Children's Trust, and former chair of the Conference of Western Attorneys General. He has been an active participant in Scouting, having served as president of the Southeast Alaska Area Council, Boy Scouts of America and in numerous other volunteer Scouting capacities.

Botelho left office in 2012 after being term-limited. He was succeeded by Merrill Sanford. With 12 years served as mayor, Botelho is the longest-serving mayor in Juneau's history.