Carolyn K. Peterson is Ithaca

Ithaca, New York

The city of Ithaca, is a city in upstate New York and the county seat of Tompkins County, as well as the largest community in the Ithaca-Tompkins County metropolitan area...

, New York's first female mayor

Mayor

In many countries, a Mayor is the highest ranking officer in the municipal government of a town or a large urban city....

, first elected in 2003 and reelected in 2007. She is a member of the Democratic Party

Democratic Party (United States)

The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...

, and her current term will end December 31, 2011.

History of same-sex marriage in New York State

On February 27, 2004, New Paltz

New Paltz (village), New York

New Paltz is a village in Ulster County in the U.S. state of New York. It is about north of New York City and south of Albany. The population was 6,818 at the 2010 census.The Village of New Paltz is located within the Town of New Paltz...

 Mayor Jason West

Jason West

Jason West is the mayor of the village of New Paltz, New York, having resumed the duties of office on June 1, 2011. He served previously as the village's mayor from January 1, 2003 to May 31, 2007....

 married 25 same-sex couples before a cheering crowd, in front of the Village Hall

Village hall

In the United States, a village hall is the seat of government for villages. It functions much as a city hall does within cities.In the United Kingdom, a village hall is usually a building within a village which contains at least one large room, usually owned by and run for the benefit of the local...

.

These weddings, coming on the heels of San Francisco's mayor Gavin Newsom

Gavin Newsom

Gavin Christopher Newsom is an American politician who is the 49th and current Lieutenant Governor of California. Previously, he was the 42nd Mayor of San Francisco, and was elected in 2003 to succeed Willie Brown, becoming San Francisco's youngest mayor in 100 years. Newsom was re-elected in 2007...

 led other New York mayors to act. On February 27, 2004, Nyack

Nyack

Nyack may refer to:*Nyack, New York, a village*Nyack College, located in the village*USS Nyack, the name of two U.S. Navy vessels...

 mayor John Shields announced that he would recognize the New Paltz marriages and on March 1, 2004, Ithaca

Ithaca, New York

The city of Ithaca, is a city in upstate New York and the county seat of Tompkins County, as well as the largest community in the Ithaca-Tompkins County metropolitan area...

's mayor Carolyn K. Peterson declared that she would recognize same-sex marriages performed in other jurisdictions.

External links

• City officials of Ithaca, including Mayor Carolyn K. Peterson (with photos).