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Two Chinese-American mayors from California have been invited to a lavish banquet at the White House to honor President Hu Jintao on Wednesday.

Oakland Mayor Jean Quan and San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee will attend the state dinner, the first staged for a Chinese leader in 13 years, alongside US President Barack Obama and his wife Michelle.

Both Quan and Lee made history by becoming their respective cities' first Asian-American mayors and, according to a report in the San Francisco Chronicle this week, are "the most prominent Chinese-American mayors in the country."

The 61-year-old Quan, a Democrat and Oakland's first female mayor, told reporters that she felt honored by the invitation.

Her husband, Dr Floyd Huen, will not attend due to work commitments, she said.

In her inauguration speech this month, she said her great-grandfather came to the US 104 years ago from his hometown in Kaiping, Guangdong province. Her generation was the first of its family to be born in the US.

Quan said she was aware her Chinese ethnicity would interest the media and hopes to use the coverage to promote Oakland and attract investment from China.

Lee, whose friendship with Quan dates back to the 1960s, when they were classmates at the University of California, Berkeley, was sworn in on Jan 11 and received his invitation to the White House two days later.

A descendent of Taishan in Guangdong province, he was born in Seattle, in the state of Washington. He is married and has two daughters.

The mayors will travel together to Washington DC, the Chronicle reported.

去听写专区一展身手

（中国日报网英语点津 Helen 编辑）

About the broadcaster:

Nelly Min is an editor at China Daily with more than 10 years of experience as a newspaper editor and photographer. She has worked at major newspapers in the U.S., including the Los Angeles Times and the Detroit Free Press. She is also fluent in Korean.