SURFSIDE, Fla. – He is the new mayor of Surfside. A fresh face and the town’s first Orthodox Jewish mayor. Shlomo Danzinger was sworn in Wednesday night and said during the ceremony, “I definitely never dreamed of being a mayor.”
He was voted in by residents to replace Charles Burkett who was tossed into the spotlight after the tragic June 24 Champlain Towers South collapse that killed 98 people.
Danzinger won Tuesday with about 35% of the total votes in the mayoral race.
“The drive to serve my community and make this place better for all of us is what has me standing here today,” he said at the swearing-in ceremony at the Town Hall Commission Chambers.
Dazinger, 42, moved from Brooklyn, New York to Surfside in 2010. The father of five ran for a commission seat in 2020 and lost. The businessman and community activist registered First Tier Defense in Florida last year, state records show.
In his speech, he spoke about how, over the next two years, the community will need to work together just as they did in June of 2021 to bring positive change to the town of Surfside.
“We came together and inspired the nation and the entire world,” he said. “I’m asking the residents of Surfside to remember the unity at bond we shared during that time we need to hold on to that feeling of community.”
For more details about the election results, visit this page.