Patricia "Pat" Gerard is a Democratic politician and the first female
mayor
In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well a ...
Paterson, New Jersey
Paterson ( ) is the largest City (New Jersey), city in and the county seat of Passaic County, New Jersey, Passaic County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey.Sarah Gerard.
She earned a
Bachelor of Arts
Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...
degree in Psychology and a
Master of Arts
A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Tho ...
University of South Florida
The University of South Florida (USF) is a public research university with its main campus located in Tampa, Florida, and other campuses in St. Petersburg and Sarasota. It is one of 12 members of the State University System of Florida. USF is ...
. Gerard was a mental health worker in a community-based rehabilitation program after graduating from USF. From 1984 to 1986 she worked as Victim's Advocate for the Largo Police Department. From 1986 to 1992 she worked as director of the Spouse Abuse Shelter of Religious Community Services, where she stayed until 1992. After that, she worked for Family Resources, Inc. as Executive Director of Helpline. She is currently their COO.
She has served on numerous boards, including Suncoast Tiger Bay Board, the Business and Professional Women of St. Petersburg, Leadership Pinellas, Pinellas County Homeless Leadership Board, the United Way Council, Pinellas County Victim Rights Coalition, Pinellas County Domestic Violence Task Force, Florida Coalition Against Domestic Violence, Governor's Coordinating Council on Victim's Rights, and the Florida Alliance of Information and Referral Services Board.
Gerard also represents Largo on the Metropolitan Planning Organization, Pinellas Mobility Initiative, Pinellas Planning Council, Health and Human Services Coordinating Council Administrative Forum, Florida League of Cities, and Pinellas Emergency Medical Services Advisory Board.
She was elected to the City Commission in 2000 and again in 2003. She became mayor by defeating her predecessor,
Robert E. Jackson
Robert E. Jackson was the mayor of Largo, Florida. He was first elected to Largo City Commission in 1974,
Mayor Jackson served nine terms as City Commissioner before being elected as Mayor in 2000 and being re-elected in 2003. He lost narrowly in ...
, in 2006 in a bitterly contested race.
Gerard and Commissioner Rodney Woods were the two dissenting votes when the Largo City Commission voted to terminate City Manager Stanton following her announcement of her decision to undergo sex reassignment surgery. In a CNN interview, Gerard explained her position of support for Stanton saying, "We're making a decision here about whether we're going to be an inclusive and compassionate community or are we going to be small-minded and bigoted."Interview of Stanton and Gerard." ''CNN.com - Transcripts''. Aired March 8, 2007. Online. April 17, 2008. /ref>
In October, 2013, Gerard announced she was running for the
Pinellas County
Pinellas County (, ) is a county located on the west central coast of the U.S. state of Florida. As of the 2020 census, the population was 959,107. The county is part of the Tampa–St. Petersburg– Clearwater, Florida Metropolitan Statistical ...