ROCKVILLE, Md. – For the first time ever, Montgomery County’s Council will be led by a Latina.
Councilmember Nancy Navarro, elected to the council in 2009, was elected Council President, taking over for Roger Berliner.
In her remarks, Navarro, who’s served as a member of the school board and chairs two council committees, emphasized her vision for “One Montgomery.”
“Being ‘One Montgomery’ means making progress together because, even if we don’t always agree on every detail, we share a common set of core values,” said Navarro.
She also thanked her family including her “abuelita,” the Spanish word for grandmother, who she said called her from Venezuela at 7:30 a.m. She also thanked her colleagues on the council, and the residents of the county.
Toward the end of her remarks, she launched into Spanish. The speech was threaded with references to unity. She concluded her remarks in Spanish by saying: “juntos lograremos mucho” which means, “together, we will achieve much.”
Councilmember Craig Rice, who at 34 was the youngest member to serve, is the second African-American elected to the nine-member council. He’ll serve as vice president.
Navarro thanked Rice in her remarks and added, “I think we’ll make a great team.”
The president and vice president serve for one year each.
WTOP’s Kate Ryan contributed to this report. Follow @KateRyanWTOP and@WTOP on Twitter.
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