The first deputy mayor, Sergio Cotilla, will replace Natacha Rivas at the helm of the Algarrobo Town Hall after she resigned to take up a senior position in the Junta de Andalucía. The municipal plenary has already acknowledged the resignation.
The Algarrobo Town Hall is preparing for a change in its highest political responsibility. Sergio Cotilla, the current first deputy mayor and councillor for Urban Planning, Operational Services and Sports, will be the candidate from the PP government team to take over the mayoralty from Natacha Rivas, who has resigned from her position as councillor to join the Junta de Andalucía as Director General of Fishing, Aquaculture and Blue Economy.
The municipal plenary acknowledged Rivas' resignation this Friday, formalised last Tuesday, July 21, at the Town Hall. The election of the new mayor will take place in an extraordinary session, the date of which has not yet been officially communicated, although it is expected to occur in the coming days.
Cotilla, born in Algarrobo on May 21, 1983, is 43 years old and is a technician in Intensive Agricultural Exploitation at the La Mayora Experimental Station in Algarrobo. He previously served as councillor for Sports from September 2013 to June 2015, and since 2023 has been part of the municipal government with the PP's absolute majority. He did not attend the plenary this Friday as he was travelling with his family.
The new mayor faces the role with a commitment to maintain public services and ongoing municipal projects. Among the actions he will need to continue are the expansion of parking spaces in various areas, the connection between Algarrobo Pueblo and the Coast via the river path, and the construction of the new medical centre in Algarrobo-Costa, the works for which have already begun.
The Town Hall has conveyed a message of reassurance to residents, ensuring that the transition will proceed in an orderly manner and that the change in the mayoralty will not affect the functioning of public services or the initiatives started during the mandate.
Rivas' departure also necessitates a reshuffle of the PP municipal team, which holds an absolute majority of seven councillors in a council of 13. Ignacio Martín will join as a new councillor once the electoral procedures are completed and he receives the credential from the Central Electoral Board. Subsequently, there will be a redistribution of the delegations.
Natacha Rivas concludes eleven years at the helm of the Algarrobo Town Hall in two stages: from 2007 to 2015, when she became mayor under the banner of the Andalucista Party, and from 2023 until this July, now with the PP. She was the first woman to hold the mayoralty in this municipality of about 7,100 inhabitants and remains the only one to have held the position in its history.
Between 2015 and 2023, the PSOE governed, with Alberto Pérez at the helm of the mayoralty. Rivas regained power in 2023 by obtaining an absolute majority in the municipal elections. Her departure comes three years before the current mandate ends.
“Being the mayor of Algarrobo has been one of the greatest honours of my life,” Rivas stated, expressing her gratitude to the residents, municipal workers, councillors, and local groups. She also noted that the criticisms received have been a reflection of the population's commitment to their municipality.
Rivas will take on the role of Director General of Fishing, Aquaculture and Blue Economy in the Junta de Andalucía, an area closely linked to the Axarquía due to the activity of the fishing port in Caleta de Vélez. The change in Algarrobo marks the eleventh change of mayor recorded in the province of Málaga since the establishment of municipal corporations in June 2023.
For the residents of Algarrobo, the change in the mayoralty does not signify a political shift, as the PP maintains its absolute majority. The continuity of projects and services is guaranteed, according to the government team. The date of the investiture plenary for Sergio Cotilla will be announced in the coming days.
