Mayor Denis Law, who has led the City of Renton through one of the worst recessions in decades, announced Thursday he will seek re-election to a second term.

“I think it’s an honor to have a job like this, in a city like this,” Law said.

Law, 62, served one four-year term on the Renton City Council, prior to running for mayor in 2007. He defeated one-term Mayor Kathy Keolker by seven percentage points in a hard-fought race.

The mayor’s salary is about $131,000.

Prior to running for public office, Law was a newspaper and magazine publisher in Renton and elsewhere in the Seattle area. He founded the Renton Reporter in 1995.

Law was elected mayor at a time when Renton’s and the nation’s economies had been on a steady rise. But from the beginning of his term, the recession has forced the city to reduce its budget and lay off city workers.

“It has been challenging times,” Law said. “What we have been trying to do is maintain service levels with a lot fewer dollars.”

Law’s top priority has always been public safety.

Law has an adviser for his campaign. Now that he has announced his intent to run, he needs to register his candidacy with the Public Disclosure Commission. That could happen as early as Friday.

It’s “amazing,” Law said, how many people have asked him about his intention to run again.

“I think what is obvious to me is that I have a strong base of support,” he said. “I don’t take that for granted. I appreciate it.”