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Kansas City, Kansas witnessed a historic moment Monday as Christal Watson was sworn in as the first Black woman to serve as mayor/CEO of the Unified Government and the first woman to hold the office since Carol Marinovich left office in 2005.
"It's a new day, Wyandotte County, it's a new day," Watson said to the crowd, which erupted in applause and gave Watson a standing ovation.
Watson becomes the fifth mayor since the Unified Government was founded, joining a leadership structure that has seen 36 different commissioners throughout its history.
Another historic note — Watson was sworn in by Candice Alcaraz, Wyandotte County's first Black female judge.
"Historically, this is one of the best days of my life," Watson said with a laugh after the inauguration ceremony.
More than 100 people gathered in Memorial Hall to witness the swearing-in of Watson and several new commissioners, creating what officials called the youngest cohort of commissioners in the Unified Government's history.
The newly elected and re-elected officials include Watson as mayor/CEO, along with newly elected commissioners Andrew Kump in District 2 At-Large, Jermaine Howard in District 1, and Dr. Carlos Pacheco in District 5.
Re-elected officials include Chuck Stites in District 7, Andrew Davis in District 8, and Wyandotte County Sheriff Daniel Soptic.
Civil rights activist Alvin Brooks, who has witnessed decades of change in the Kansas City area, called the moment unprecedented.
"I thought when Mayor Garner was elected that was a moment in time," Brooks said. "This is a second moment in time."
Kansas City, Missouri Mayor Quinton Lucas attended the ceremony and spoke with Watson about regional collaboration.
"Mayor Watson is not just making history, she's making change," Lucas said. "I talked to her for about 30 seconds, and she said, 'We're gonna fix some bridges tomorrow, we're going to work on housing, we've got a World Cup coming, and we need to do more on regional collaboration."
Infrastructure improvement was one of Watson's key campaign promises, as the county is currently plagued by several closed bridges.
She previously told me she wants the commission to help to achieve these goals.
Stites listed off additional issues he’d like to see the mayor and commission address.
“I believe that we will be faced with some issues in the first part of 2026 that will fundamentally define Wyandotte County and how we support one another,” Stites said. “Homelessness is on the rise, the sense of community is being tested, transparency is in question, customer service is viewed low, people are being taxed out of their homes, and we have the responsibility to address it.”
Lucas also shared where he'd like to see regional improvement.
"We need to make sure there are more jobs in Kansas City, Kansas and Kansas City, Missouri," Lucas said. "We need to make sure there are more transit connections, that we’re doing better by the people, and I think she’s going to do an exceptional job of it."
Davis noted the significance of the new leadership team's demographics during his speech and encouraged young people to get civically involved.
"This is gonna be the youngest cohort of commissioners, I believe in the history of the Unified Government," Davis said.
Their first full commission meeting is scheduled for Thursday, December 18 at 7 p.m.
Watson emphasized unity as a priority for her administration.
She took a moment to call all of the commissioners on stage with her and asked all UG staff and public safety officials to stand.
"It is important that the community see us stand united and stand together," Watson said. "No more division."
While Brooks celebrated the historic achievement, he says history as a whole has a long way to go.
"I want to say the best is yet to come, but I have to see it first," Brooks said.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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