Broome out as National League of Cities president

After losing her reelection bid, Mayor Sharon Weston Broome will no longer serve as president of the National League of Cities.

Comprising 2,700 local leaders from across the country, the National League of Cities has a stated goal advocating for and protecting the interests of cities, towns and villages. Broome was elected to serve a one-year term as president of the organization in November.

Because members of the National League of Cities must currently hold a position in elected office to serve on its board of directors, Broome will resign her position as president when her mayoral term comes to a close on Jan. 2.

In a special election held by its board of directors on Dec. 19, the National League of Cities announced that Steve Patterson, the mayor of Athens, Ohio, will serve as its new president for a one-year term, effective Jan. 2.

Van Johnson, the mayor of Savannah, Georgia, and Kevin Kramer, a city councilmember in Louisville, Kentucky, will serve as vice presidents under Patterson.

In a statement, Broome reflected on her time with the National League of Cities.

“It has been the honor of my life to serve as mayor-president of Baton Rouge and within NLC’s leadership as an officer and a member of the board,” Broome’s statement reads. “NLC has provided so much to me throughout my career, and I express my immense gratitude to each of its members for their leadership, partnership and friendship over the years.”