The City Council voted, 5-0, for Howorth to succeed Joe Franklin as mayor. The Manhattan Beach mayoral position rotates every 9 1/2 months, with each councilmember having the opportunity to serve as mayor. The council also approved the naming of Councilmember David Lesser as Mayor Pro Tem.

This will be Howorth's third time as mayor of Manhattan Beach, having served two previous terms on City Council.

At Tuesday night's meeting Howorth was decked out in her trademark pink, while the other four members of the council wore pink boutonnieres (a gift from Franklin) in her honor.

And as Franklin prepared to hand over the ceremonial gavel to Howorth, she surprised the crowd by pulling out a custom pink glittery gavel that she had made in honor of the occasion.

"I truly appreciate the vote of confidence from my colleagues," said Howorth. "And so many people say it's a thankless job, but I've never really felt that way. People have always been kind and gracious, and I just want to say how much that means."

Howorth continued: "I don't have a grand agenda as being mayor, or specific things I want to accomplish, because it's not about me, it's about you. I simply promise to do my best and take my turn as mayor seriously - not myself seriously, but my role as mayor seriously. We - all of us on the dais - are here for you."

The council reorganization meeting was marked with community and council well-wishes for Howorth as well as praise for Franklin.

The transition ceremony began with Howorth presenting Franklin with a rodeo figurine. The phrase "It's not my first rodeo," had been a running joke among the other council members who have all previously served multiple terms. "But unlike the rest of us, this guy has actually performed in a real rodeo," said Howorth.

(Franklin later clarified to MB News that he was a wrangler who roped and herded horses at a ranch in Arizona in his teenage years.)

"[Franklin] shows up, and does so with enthusiasm, and loves this community. It's infectious," said Mayor Pro Tem David Lesser. Lesser added, "How you've led our proceedings here - with civility, seeking to find consensus - has truly helped our community."

Councilmember Richard Montgomery, noting that every mayor has "at least one crisis," thanked Franklin in particular for his work on safety education and enforcement on ebikes.

Councilmember Steve Napolitano added: "Joe always looks for the answer, he looks for the solution, he looks for something we can all get together on... as we all do... and I hope that the incoming folks do as well. If you see us up here having fun, it's because we genuinely do have fun together. We like each other. Even when we disagree, we're not disagreeable with each other. That's what makes us a team here ... At the end of the day, things get moved forward and that's we're here to do."

Franklin thanked his family, community members, and his fellow councilmembers and city staff. "It's been a great honor to represent the city we all love as its mayor," he said, adding, "We owe so much to those mayors and residents who came before us who worked to make the city the special place it is today."