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Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle Parker was inaugurated into office on December 26, officially becoming the first Black woman to hold the office.
Parker was privately sworn into office on January 1 as Philadelphia’s 100th mayor.
The ceremony was private, as the team did not inform the press or give any information. A reading of the city charter may have been the reason for the early, yet private ceremony.
“All persons elected… shall, before entering upon the duties of their offices or employments, take an oath of office to support the Constitutions of the United States and of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and this charter.”, as stated in the charter.
Furthermore, the charter states her term must begin “on the first Monday of January following the mayor’s election.” Due to the first Monday being New Year’s Day, a formal swearing-in was unlikely to happen for Parker.
Following the immediate ending of Jim Kenney’s term, Parker became the newly sworn-in Philadelphia Mayor.
Political Leaders Not Suprised by Parker’s Early Inauguration
The administration’s role in Parker’s inauguration was not a surprise, as many political leaders, like Mustafa Rashed, thought it would happen in that matter.
Rashed told WHHY News, that “[He] would imagine that the lawyers probably said, ‘Hey, what if this happens? Or, what if that transpires?” Moreover, he explained how no one wants, “to be in a position where you had to go get the mayor-elect to be sworn in to run the government.”
With an early inauguration, the new administration avoided the risk of a power void, while eliminating questions about Parker’s authority.