The mayor of Methuen Neil Perry died Saturday following “many health battles,” his office said in a statement.

Perry, a lifelong Methuen resident, was 65 and battling kidney disease, The Eagle-Tribune reported.

“Mayor Perry has fought many health battles over the last several years but came back from each of them with renewed vigor to tackle, in his own words, the greatest job he ever had: being the mayor of the great City of Methuen,” his office’s statement read.

At-Large Councilor D.J. Beauregard will serve as acting mayor until a Special Election can be held, according to a follow-up statement from the mayor’s office. Beauregard was chosen to be first in the line of succession at a January City Council meeting. 

The Council will also hold an emergency meeting Monday night to discuss the “continuation of Methuen Government after the untimely passing of Mayor Perry.”

The Special Election must be held within 60 days to replace Perry.

“Mayor Perry wasn’t just a close ally and mentor – he was my friend. I grieve for the loss our community faces, and I am saddened by the sudden loss of my dear friend,” Beauregard wrote on Facebook. “As Acting Mayor, I will use the lessons I learned from him to keep our city moving forward over the next 60 days.”

Perry was a former teacher, fighting for transparency in Methuen

Perry attended Central Catholic High School in Lawrence and University of Massachusetts Lowell, where he studied elementary education and Spanish. He worked as a transitional bilingual educator in the Methuen Public Schools before beginning a decades-long career at Raytheon, his campaign website said.

Perry, a Democrat, took office in 2020. He focused in part on implementing “conservative fiscal oversight” and increasing government transparency, his website reads. He ordered an audit of the Methuen Police Department after wide-spread fraud and corruption centered around the high-earning former chief became public.

“His last, and perhaps greatest, achievement was securing the City’s purchase of the Searles Estate from the Sisters of Presentation of Mary, saving the City’s most iconic and historic property from an uncertain future,” the statement said.

In July, Perry announced his plans to acquire the Searles Estate, the 19th century estate of Edward Searles, a member of one of Methuen’s philanthropist families dating back to the Industrial Era, according to the city. 

The property, which had an assessed value of over $10 million, was sold to the City for $3.25 million.

“The City of Methuen has taken a major step toward ensuring that the most important piece of Methuen’s rich Gilded Age era of grand estates will not be lost to decay or unwelcome development, but rather preserved and restored for the benefit of future generations of Methuen residents,” Perry said at the time. 

Local, state, and congressional leaders mourn Perry

Diana DiZoglio, the state auditor and Methuen resident, said Perry “gave his absolutely all to our community.”

Governor Maura Healey, Rep. Lori Trahan, and Essex County District Attorney Paul Tucker all shared statements on social media as well.

“Everyone in the Commonwealth knew that no matter the situation, Neil never backed down from a fight if it was in the best interest of hardworking families in Methuen,” Trahan wrote.