Former state Rep. William Cogswell became the first Republican mayor of the city of Charleston in nearly 150 years in brisk weather on Jan. 8 when he took the oath of office at 12:12 p.m.
The mayor’s office in Charleston is nonpartisan, but mayors often identify with a party, and voters often know how they lean. While Cogswell told interviewers his campaign did not focus on partisanship, he received support from several Republican leaders and organizations during his campaign and after his election.
“I would like to thank John Tecklenburg for his passionate service to Charleston,” Cogswell said during inaugural remarks outside of City Hall. “There is no question he loves this city, and I sincerely appreciate his graciousness during this transition. I also want to convey my sincere gratitude to the members of City Council. … It is clear we share an appreciation and love for Charleston’s past, its present and its future.”
Hundreds gathered at the Four Corners of Law prior to the inauguration. 
Charleston Police Chief Chito Walker talks with Dave Echols of the Charleston RiverDogs. 
Outgoing Charleston Mayor John Tecklenburg, center, offers good luck for new Mayor William Cogswell, who is in the gray suit. Credit: City Paper/Andy Brack 
Cogswell takes the oath of office as his family watches. 
Cogswell got a standing ovation after he was sworn in. Credit: Andy Brack, Charleston City Paper 
The new mayor makes a point during inaugural remarks.
Tecklenburg also wished Cogswell “good luck” when he opened the event. But the day was for Cogswell, who focused in remarks on how Charleston was more than a run-of-the-mill city.
“It is a community in the truest sense of the word, ironically forged in a tradition of fierce independence and individual expression from the Revolution to the civil rights movement,” he said. “It represents both raw and refined American Exceptionalism.
“We must think a century ahead and not succumb to generic trends, commoditized products and populist whims. We must be better than that because we are better than that.”
Charleston has not elected a Republican mayor since 1877, according to a report by The Associated Press, despite the state of South Carolina not having voted for a Democratic president since Jimmy Carter in 1976.
Alongside Cogswell, newly elected city council members also took the oath of office on Monday. Council members who were sworn in included Boyd Gregg of District 1, James McBride of District 3, Karl Brady of District 5, Keith Waring of District 7, William Tinkler of District 9 and Ross Appel of District 11. McBride and Tinkler will be serving their first term as council members.
More than 500 people bundled in scarves and coats attended Cogswell’s inauguration on a chilly Monday afternoon. The crowd might have been larger, but President Joe Biden’s speech at the Emanuel AME Church that was set for about the same time likely cut into the number of inaugural attendees.
Cogswell invited Biden to attend his inauguration, but Biden’s campaign reportedly declined.
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