Mia Love Is Utah’s First Black Female Mayor

Mia Love, Mayor of Saratoga Springs, Utah

History was made on January 8 when Mia Love was sworn in as mayor of Saratoga Springs, Utah before a crowd of 120 people. She is the first black woman to be elected mayor in the state’s history.

Love previously served on the Saratoga Springs city council, but her victory was still something of a surprise to outside observers. Of the city’s 10,000 residents, only 0.5 percent are black.

However, Love credited her experience and personality as factors behind her election, downplaying the racial aspect of her victory. Speaking to the Deseret News, she said “We’re not bound by racial stigmas. People don’t care about that. They don’t even see a color.”

Mia Love may not want to be a role model, but she should be an inspiration to black people across the nation. Her election is another example that race is no longer the barrier that it once was to achieving success. If Utah can elect black politicians, we are clearly living in a new era.