Craig Lowe

Who is Craig Lowe?

Stuart Craig Lowe, better known as Craig Lowe, is an American politician and former Mayor of Gainesville, Florida. After winning a runoff election on April 13, 2010, by a margin of 42 votes Lowe became Mayor-elect of Gainesville. He was sworn in on May 20, 2010, becoming the first openly gay Mayor of the city. He lost his bid for re-election on April 16, 2013 to former city councilman Ed Braddy after being arrested for a DUI during the campaign.

He was first elected to the Gainesville City Commission to fill the newly created District IV seat for a one-year term in April 2003 and served through his third consecutive term and second full term until being sworn in as Mayor.

Mayor Lowe also served as Chair of the Gainesville City Commission’s Equal Opportunity Committee, a member of the Regional Utilities, Community Development, and Countywide Visioning & Planning committees as well as the local Community Redevelopment Agency, the Gainesville/Alachua County Metropolitan Transportation Planning Organization and the Alachua County Library Governing Board.

Lowe was a member of the Mayors Against Illegal Guns Coalition, an organization formed in 2006 and co-chaired by New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg and Boston mayor Thomas Menino.