Tucson Mayor Regina Romero to join US delegation to Mexican inauguration

President Joe Biden chose Tucson Mayor Regina Romero to join a presidential delegation of mostly federal officials attending the inauguration of Mexico’s new president Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo.

The delegation led by First Lady Jill Biden is made up of federal officials and Romero, who is the only mayor invited to be a part of the group. The delegation will travel to Mexico City to attend the Oct. 1 inauguration.

"I am looking forward to being there and I’m super incredibly honored to be part of such a distinguished delegation," Romero said.

Other officials of the delegation traveling to the inauguration include Ken Salazar, U.S. ambassador to Mexico; Xavier Becerra, secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services; Alejandro Mayorkas, secretary of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security; U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn. and others.

Following Biden's announcement on Sept. 24, Romero said she was "super super surprised" by the invitation, and was honored to represent Tucson on the delegation.

Romero is the daughter of immigrants and the first Mexican-American woman to be elected mayor of Tucson, a city that lies just 60 miles north of Mexico. She said those factors likely contributed to her invitation.

She also noted Mexico's importance as Arizona’s largest trade partner, as well as the shared history between Sonora, Mexico and Tucson.

"We share the borderlands, we share the Sonoran desert, we share culture and history," Romero told The Arizona Republic.

Romero posted about the announcement on X, reiterating Mexico's "historic" inauguration as Sheinbaum will be the country's first woman president. Sheinbaum will replace Mexico’s current president, Andrés Manuel López Obrador who was elected in 2018.

Romero told The Arizona Republic that Sheinbaum's inauguration is an important milestone for women everywhere. She said the U.S. has a chance to "catch up" to Mexico's historic election and elect Kamala Harris as the first woman to be president of the U.S.

Romero has been outspoken in her support of Harris. The announcement of the delegation comes one month after Romero opened the Democratic National Convention. She also recently introduced Doug Emhoff during his campaign stop in Tucson.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Tucson Mayor Regina Romero to join US delegation to Mexican inauguration