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Lillian Bonsignore Sworn In as FDNY Commissioner, First Openly Gay Leader of the Department

Her appointment followed weeks of debate over her lack of firefighting experience despite a three-decade EMS career.

Overview

  • Mayor Zohran Mamdani administered the oath Tuesday at FDNY headquarters in Brooklyn, installing Bonsignore to lead the nation’s largest fire department.
  • She assumes the role immediately, succeeding short-term appointee Mark Guerra after Robert Tucker’s resignation during the mayoral transition.
  • Bonsignore, 56, is a 31-year FDNY veteran who led the EMS division from 2019 to 2022 and later served as a senior advisor at Cambridge Consulting Group.
  • Her selection makes her the second woman and the first openly gay person to serve as FDNY commissioner.
  • Critics highlighted her lack of firefighting experience, including a warning from Elon Musk, while Mamdani defended her EMS credentials and noted recent commissioners were not firefighters.