Ivy Taylor is San Antonio's First Black Mayor

Ivy Taylor has made history by becoming the first Black Mayor of San Antonio, Texas. Last summer Taylor was appointed interim mayor when Julian Castro left to become President Obama’s Secretary of Housing and Urban Development. In this election, Taylor won a close runoff against former state Senator Leticia Van de Putte.

Taylor was born and raised in Queens, New York. She received a Bachelor’s degree from Yale as well as a Master’s Degree in City Planning from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She has worked for the Housing and Community Development Department and the Neighborhood Action Department and served on the city council.

“Do you realize we have defeated a political machine?” Taylor said of her historic victory. “The work starts on Monday at City Hall. We come together now as a city.”

Congrats Mayor Taylor!

Image: Edward A. Ornelas/San Antonio Express-News