Arkansas’s capital city officially has a new mayor, and the news is reverberating around the entire state and the country. Frank Scott, Jr. was sworn into office on Tuesday in front of a packed Robinson Auditorium. Scott is the city’s first popularly elected African-American mayor.

In his remarks, he said city residents need to come together for Little Rock to reach its true potential.

“As I stand here today, it’s to let everyone know it is time for a better Little Rock that truly understands its diversity and its identity so that we can truly chart a new course for Little Rock, a new course for the new South, and make certain that we reach a new era as we seek our new North Star.”

He outlined his priorities, which include stimulating job growth, securing communities, improving the city’s economic standing, returning the Little Rock School District to local control, investing in children and holding the city accountable for its spending.

It will be a “new day” in City Hall, he said.

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