DENVER — As the City of Denver swore in its 46th mayor Monday morning, it also celebrated more milestones with a diverse set of city council members taking the oath.
Jamie Torres, the council member representing District 3, spoke to the council’s diversity at the start of Monday’s ceremony.
It’s comprised of six Latina women – Amanda P. Sandoval, Torres, Diana Romero Campbell, Flor Alvidrez, Stacie Gilmore and Serena Gonzales-Gutierrez – which is the most Latina or Latino representation in the council’s history.
Shontel Lewis and Darrell Watson are also the first two openly black LGBTQ+ members on the council.
Torres quipped, to laughter from the audience, about a supermajority of nine women, which “coincidentally is the number needed to override a mayoral veto.”
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Six members are new to the council:
- Diana Romero-Campbell (District 4)
- Flor Alvidrez (District 7)
- Shontel Lewis (District 8)
- Darrell Watson (District 9)
- Serena Gonzales-Gutierrez (At-large)
- Sarah Parady (At-large)
Johnston opened his roughly 10-minute address to the crowd at the Ellie Caulkins Opera House with praise for the newly-elected council.
“Take a minute please and just enjoy and revel in the incredible gifts and diversity and talents that this city council brings, as a sign of a diverse and powerful Denver,” he said.
In his first media interview as Denver’s mayor, Denver7 Chief Investigator Tony Kovaleski asked Johnston what the makeup of the new council means for the city.
“I think the voters of Denver have said, ‘We want a new dream of Denver, we want to believe that big things are possible in the city. And we want a coalition of leaders who might not all agree on everything, but they're going to work relentlessly together to actually deliver that,’” Johnston said.
“It's not going to be squabbles, it's not going to be turf wars. It's going to be all of us committed to the same outcome, and [being] relentless in our pursuit of it. I think that's what people were looking for is a big vision, a real plan to execute and the tenacity to stay out. And that's what we'll bring.”
Denver’s city council passes laws in the city and deals heavily in zoning matters, but defers power in most cases to the mayor in Denver’s “strong mayor” form of government.
