Carl Stokes was the first African-American member of the Democratic Party elected to the Ohio House. In 1967, Stokes was elected Mayor of Cleveland, the first African-American mayor of a major U.S. city. He was reelected in 1969. Stokes later became the first African-American television news anchor in New York City. From 1983-1984, he served as a Cleveland Municipal Court Judge. President Bill Clinton appointed him U.S. Ambassador to the Seychelles.