Mayor Margaret Faye

Margaret Faye is the mayor of Odyssey, a wealthy widow who wins the office over rival candidate Bart Rathbone and who also owns an antique shop in town. Cultured and sharp-witted, she relishes museums, concerts, art galleries, and a spirited debate about God, money, and calling, and she nurses an open fondness for Whit Whittaker - an affection strong enough that she once proposes marriage herself. As a politician she can be shrewd to the point of ruthlessness, planting doubts in campaign volunteers, ordering opposition research on respected citizens, and pressuring Whit's End and other Christian ventures to downplay their faith or face closure. Yet she is not beyond reason: when challenged, she can be persuaded to give people a fair hearing, and her hard edges hide genuine feeling.