SILVERTON, Ore. (AP) -- The nation's first openly transgender mayor won by a comfortable margin on election night.

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Stu Rasmussen was recently elected the mayor of Silverton. He is believed to be America's first openly transgender Mayor.

On Monday, he won by a landslide.

A large group of counterprotesters overmatched three young women and a man from a Kansas church who came to Silverton to protest Stu Rasmussen's election win.

The protesters from the Westboro Baptist Church arrived with an assortment of signs, such as "God Hates You," "Fags Are Beasts," "Your Pastor is a Whore" and "Barack Obama

Antichrist."

But the town greeted the quartet with a festive counterprotest. More than 100 people paraded in the street and some men wore women's clothing in a show of support for Rasmussen.

"Today, I'm just Joe the Crossdresser," said Silverton attorney Yossi Davidson, 59, who stood across City Hall from the protesters wearing a dress. "Stu's an institution in this town, which is probably why he got elected. He's a straightforward, genuine kind of guy despite his gender complexities."

Rasmussen, 60, has been a fixture in Silverton politics for more than 20 years, and had twice before been mayor of the small city 45 miles south of Portland. Those terms, however, were before his breast implants and before the once-discreet crossdresser started wearing dresses and 3-inch heels in public.

 Background: Transgender man elected mayor

Rasmussen stood with friends and watched the spectacle with a mixture of amusement and pride. "This is very heartwarming; this is such a great community," he said. "I don't think this is about me as much as it's about community spirit."

The Westboro protesters were less impressed.

"Although Stu's an abomination, these people are enablers because they support him," said Jonathan Phelps, 49.