WILTON MANORS, Fla. – Wilton Manors' new city leadership was sworn in Tuesday, making history with an all-gay City Commission and a gay mayor.
According to Victory Fund, an organization that works to increase the number of openly LGBTQ officials in all levels of government, Wilton Manors is the second city in the United States to have a city council with all gay members, after Palm Springs, California.
Last week, Commissioner Justin Flippen was elected mayor, while the outgoing mayor, Gary Resnick, won a commissioner seat. Paul Rolli won the second commissioner seat in a four-candidate race.
Commissioner Scott Newton, the only straight member of the commission, lost his re-election bid.
In this historically loud, out and proud city, the new all-gay commission may not be much of a shocker.
"It's a historical marker but not necessarily a defining moment," Rolli said.
But they say they want to set an example.
"We are the hallmark for creating a kinder and gentler world," Carson said.
The two other commissioners who form the five-person body, Julie Carson and Tom Green, are in the middle of their terms.
Wilton Manors has had members of the LGBTQ community on the City Commission since the 1980s, according to its website. By 2000 the city's governing body was majority gay. Using data from the 2010 Census, the Williams Institute ranked Wilton Manors second among U.S. small cities with the highest number of same-sex couples.