Wilton Manors Mayor Justin Flippen Dies At Age 41

The South Florida Sun-Sentinel reports:

Justin Flippen, the mayor of Wilton Manors, died suddenly Tuesday. Flippen was 41. He was elected mayor in 2018 after serving as a city commissioner. City officials said that Flippen apparently was driving to Tuesday evening’s City Commission meeting when he became ill and died.

“We were notified that Justin apparently was on his way to the City Commission meeting and they had to rush him to the hospital and he passed away at the hospital,” said Commissioner Gary Resnick, who served as mayor before Flippen. He was a candidate for re-election in November.

“Justin was a great kid. I’ve watched him grow up from a 20-something legislative aide to the mayor of Wilton Manors. He was engaged. He was getting married. He was so full of hope for the future. I’m just devastated,” said Stacy Ritter, president and CEO of the Greater Fort Lauderdale Convention and Visitors Bureau, where Flippen worked.

When Flippen was elected mayor in 2018, he became part of the nation’s second-ever all-LGBT city government. The first was Palm Springs.