After 40-Plus Years on Robbinsdale City Council, Bill Blonigan Won’t Seek Re-Election
For more than 40 years, Bill Blonigan has had a role in shaping Robbinsdale.
However, the current mayor and longtime city council member told CCX News he plans to step away from politics after completing his term.
The decision comes after he was recently diagnosed with prostate cancer. He had surgery to remove his prostate in late December.
More than 40 Years of Service
Blonigan was elected on Nov. 6, 1980. He took office the first week of January in 1981.
He was elected mayor of Robbinsdale in fall 2020.
“I’ve had an opportunity to be involved in almost every decision over the last 44 years,” Blonigan told CCX News.
But news from his doctor meant he needed to make a decision of the medical variety rather than the political.
Blonigan, 70, had spent about a year monitoring his prostate health with his doctor. When his test results came back positive for cancer, the decided to go in for surgery in late December.
“It’s time to have a prostatectomy and all the pain that goes with that, but much better outlooks if you take it all out for the future,” Blonigan said. “So I’m very hopeful, nothing is a guarantee … we did get it early, so that’s good.”
Robbinsdale Mayor and longtime city council member Bill Blonigan told CCX News he plans to step away from the city council after completing his term. The decision comes after he was recently diagnosed with prostate cancer. He had surgery to remove his prostate in late December.
Moving On
The choice to get surgery was followed by the decision to step away from politics to focus on his health and family.
“I’m not going to run for election again,” Blonigan said. “It’s partially a result of the prostate cancer and taking care of my health, and it’s partially a family decision because my family has been so patient.”
He said he can’t continue to campaign and stay in office indefinitely.
“If I could just be there four more years, at the end of that time period, there’d still be things I wish I could get done, so It’s time to move on,” he said.
Mayor Blonigan’s Term Ends in 2024
Blonigan’s term runs through the end of 2024.
“For the rest of the year, I’ll be very active trying to accomplish the goals that the city council has,” he said.
And while Blonigan said he enjoys servings as mayor, he’s also excited to travel and spend more time with his family.
“My wife is fully retired, 40 years as a teacher, she still likes me and so it would be good to travel together,” he said. “The biggest honor in my life is my family … serving the citizens of Robbinsdale, that would be right up there too as the second-most important honor I’ve ever had.”
