Black Mayors: Lottie Shackleford

Lottie Shackleford was the first woman, and the second African American, to serve as mayor of Little Rock from January 1987 to December 1988. Shackleford, born in Little Rock, earned a B.A. in Business Administration at Philander Smith College in 1979. She then worked for the Urban League of Greater Little Rock, the Economic Opportunity Agency of Pulaski County, the Opportunities Industrialization Center, and the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences. In 1980 she was elected to the Little Rock Board of Directors, becoming the first black candidate in Little Rock to win a majority of votes in a citywide election. In the 1980s, Shackelford served as a delegate to the Democratic National Convention and co-chaired the Platform and Rules Committees. She also severed on President Bill Clinton’s transition team.