Corine Mauch, who is
openly gay, was elected mayor of Zurich on Sunday,
making Zurich the most
prominent international city to elect an
out lesbian mayor
to date. The historic election also made Mauch the first female
mayor of the largest city in Switzerland.
Mauch, who belongs to the center-left Social
Democratic Party, defeated Kathrin Martelli, representing a
coalition of center-right parties, by more than 11,000
votes in a campaign dominated by talk about gender and
sexuality. The two women faced each other in a second election
after the first, in February, left neither with enough
votes to win.
Mauch, 49, has lived
with her partner for many years, according to OpEdNews.com. She
played bass with two rock bands, The Hoover and Fallacy, in the
1990s.
Mauch will replace outgoing mayor Elmar Ledergerber when he
officially steps down in May. Zurich joins Paris,
Berlin, and Hamburg as major international cities
with openly gay mayors, though all previously elected
gay mayors have been male.
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