SAN FRANCISCO — San Francisco welcomed its first Asian-American leader Tuesday, as City Administrator Edwin Lee was sworn in as interim mayor before a crowd of hundreds.

The Board of Supervisors voted unanimously to appoint Lee to fill the remainder of Mayor Gavin Newsom’s term. Newsom was sworn in Monday as California’s lieutenant governor.

Immediately following the vote, Lee took the oath of office before a packed audience of family members, current and former city leaders and supporters from the Chinese-American community who gathered in the City Hall rotunda.

“This is a big step we’re making as a city,” said Supervisor Eric Mar, one of four Asian-Americans serving on the 11-member board.

San Francisco’s population of 815,000 is nearly one-third Asian – the largest percentage of any county in the continental United States, according to U.S. Census Bureau.

With Lee serving as the city’s 43rd mayor, San Francisco is now the largest in the country with an Asian-American leader, said Don Nakanishi, director emeritus of the UCLA Asian Studies Center.

Earlier this month, neighboring Oakland inaugurated Mayor Jean Quan, the first Asian-American woman to helm a major U.S. city. Quan, a longtime acquaintance of Lee’s, also was present at Tuesday’s ceremony to show her support.

The 58-year-old will serve as interim mayor until next January, when the winner of November’s mayoral election will take over. Lee, a city employee for more than 20 years, has said he does not plan to run.

But he said Tuesday he sees the temporary job as a “tremendous, historic opportunity.”

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