At Erie City Hall on January 5, 2026 Daria Devlin, 48, was sworn in as the 49th mayor of the City of Erie. A capacity crowd demonstrated the enthusiasm and diversity of Daria’s support, coming from every corner of the city’s community.
From the New American Academy children who led the Pledge of Allegiance to Devlin’s father the Very Reverend Steven Simon who gave the invocation saying, “We beseech you to grant our new mayor the wisdom to lead with justice and compassion for all Erie residents,” then gave his daughter a hug.
Daria’s husband Neal Devlin held the Bible, as the Honorable Richard A. Lanzillo, Chief Magistrate Judge for U.S. District Court, Western District of Pennsylvania administered the oath of office.
Then describing her young self as a nerd and a bookworm who spent much of her youth in the Pfeiffer-Burleigh school library, or in the Erie County Public Library then on Perry Square, she challenged everyone to join her in writing the next chapter of Erie’s story, Insisting that it’s up to us. “Up to us to build our brand, up to us to take care of our neighbors, up to us to attract new talent, up to us to retain our young people, up to us to be the first in generations to finally reverse our population decline, and yes I will say it, reclaim our position as Pennsylvania’s 3rd largest city.”
That statement that brought applause from the crowd, but the new mayor and her team know it’s a big promise to make. “My staff said don’t say it — to lay that out there,” Devlin said adding, “but otherwise what are we doing? Everything that we’re working on it’s all toward that ultimate goal. We need more people in the City of Erie, we need it for our budget, we need it for our growth, so I’m not going to stop saying it and I’m going to do my best to get us there.”
Erie Insurance President and CEO Tim NeCastro who attended the inauguration resonates with the idea of writing that next chapter together. “The closer we work together across all the different sectors of our population here the more progress we’re going to make. I think Daria embodies that and I’m really excited to be working with her.”
Former Erie Mayor Joyce Savocchio, the first female elected to serve as mayor, said she’s waited 20 years to see the second woman elected to the4 office and she expressed full confidence in Devlin. “There are going to be very challenging times ahead, but she’s ready to meet them,” Savocchio said.
Devlin took time to thank all of the city employees and department leaders, thanking them one by one. And she thanked the voters who supported her new vision for the city. “I am honored by your faith in me, I am inspired by your love for Erie, I am humbled by your expectations, and quite honestly I just don’t want to let you down—thank you so much.”