Robert Cooksey, city commissioners A. R. Douglas and Bob Yearack, and former city commissioner Raymond McCormick. He was the second youngest candidate that year, at age 36. That wasn't the only crowded race, 17 men faced off for the four city commissioner seats. Cooksey won the primary by a substantial margin in the February 26 primary. He received 1,512 votes to Butler's 1,079. However another 1,987 votes were cast for the mayor's three other opponents: 887 for Douglas, 662 for Yearack and 478 for McCormick. In his race against Cooksey, Butler campaigned against the "willy-nilly city administration." He campaigned for more jobs and economic development, addressing the issue of water supply and sewer lines, as well as dealing with flood control and drainage issues. He attacked Cooksey for the city's finances which were $42,000 in the red the previous year and scheduled to be $90,000 in the red by May 1963. According to Butler, "It's up to the mayor to study each problem as it arises, determine in his own mind what is best to do for all of the people. I think the mayor of any town has got to stand on his own two feet and make up his mind without being dictated to by any individual or group. I think also when a man is elected mayor the people are entitled to know where he stands. He ought to be able to tell the people. If a matter requires a 'yes' or 'no' answer he should say 'yes' or 'no.'" The regional newspaper, the Southern Illinoisan endorsed Butler in his race. "Marion voters will choose Tuesday between orderly, progressive city government or a continuation of the present slap-dash regime... Butler, in short, offers an excellent alternative... He has our wholehearted support." At the General Election two days later on April 16, Butler beat Cooksey by 687 votes, 2,914 to 2,227. Tenure He has served as mayor through many disasters, including the 1982 Marion Tornado that killed 10 and injured 200, and a disastrous fire in 1997 that burned down the town civic center. In 2007, Butler opposed the Illinois electric rate increase. The New York Times ran a feature story on this issue featuring Butler. Butler won his 14th election for mayor on April 7, 2015, with 71.8 percent of the vote in a three-way race. On May 5, 2015, Butler became the longest-serving mayor in Illinois