Little Elm Mayor-Elect Curtis Cornelious Hopes Historic Victory Inspires Youth

LITTLE ELM, Texas (CBSDFW.COM) - Fort Worth and Arlington weren't the only North Texas cities to elect new mayors this weekend.

One of the fastest growing towns in the Metroplex will also have new leadership.

Denton County's Little Elm elected its first Black mayor.

"What that tells people – Black, brown, any color, any ethnic background – it can be done," said Curtis J. Cornelious. "And that's one of the reasons I did it."

He said he hopes his historic victory inspires younger generations in Little Elm and beyond.

"Some of the kids that I first coached, they were out as first-time voters, and it felt good because these were kids of every color, every background, and they said, 'Me being able to vote for you as the first Black mayor is just an awesome feeling,'" Cornelious said.

Cornelious was born and raised in Arkansas, but he has lived in Little Elm for nearly 20 years.

He and his wife have raised three kids there.

"Little Elm is a heartfelt community," he said. "We believe in treating people right."

He joined the town council in 2009 and served as mayor pro tem five times.

"We are building a community where if you live here, you don't have to leave," said Cornelious. "If you come to visit, you don't want to leave."

He said he wanted to continue that work as mayor.

Now, Cornelious is focused on bringing the community together and working to make Little Elm as safe and prosperous as it can be, as more and more people move there.

"We have to make sure we have the appropriate number of officers and fire personnel, EMTs to keep up with growth," he said. "The community spirit is still here, and we'll do all we can to stay unified."

Cornelious will be sworn in next Tuesday, June 15, and begin his three-year term.