New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg delivers his inauguration speech after taking the oath of office on Jan. 1, 2010, at City Hall in New York City.
Photo by Hiroko Masuike/Getty ImagesAlthough the national government gets a lot of face time in civics classes and the news media, local governments in America play a key role in people's day-to-day lives. Cities are an intricate part of the local government system, and since they vary greatly in size, population and politics, there's no one way run them. At the same time, a city can't succeed without some kind of management to keep it going.
In some cities, that management and authority come directly -- and indirectly -- from the mayor. Depending on the size and power structure set up by a city's charter or statutory laws, a mayor can play either an important or a minor role in a city's development and future.
In New York City, where the population is more than 8 million, the mayor has a major governing role with both national and local politics weighing on the position. In a much smaller city, though, a mayor might have more of a ceremonial role, participating in special occasions or welcoming important guests.
As the United States has grown, the position of the mayor has adapted. Many cities still have mayors, even if their duties have more to do with public relations than with the city's administration. On the next few pages, we'll take a look at some of the responsibilities mayors can have, how they are elected and who works under them. We'll also take a look at how mayors of larger cities work together to bring their urban agendas before Congress, and the President, to ensure the success of cities nationwide.
Let's go on the next page to learn more about what a mayor does.
What Does a Mayor Do?
Traditionally, mayors oversee a city's main departments, including the police, fire, education, housing and transportation departments. At the same time, their responsibilities vary depending on the local power structure. There are four main options for a city's local government structure, and some cities use a combination of several.
A common power structure is the council-weak mayor. This type of structure gives the majority of the city power to the council members, with the mayor acting as more of a ceremonial leader of the council. This traditional form of governing, which was adopted from the British style of local government, sets up the mayor as a member of the council, equal to all other members, except for a few other responsibilities. The mayor in this structure may have final authority over fiscal issues and will usually be the presiding member over all the council meetings, sign proclamations for the city and make ceremonial appearances.
Another structure is the council-strong mayor, in which the mayor has significantly more authority. In this system, the council members are in charge of the legislative processes of the city, while the mayor is responsible for all the administrative duties. This differs from the council-weak mayor, in which all of the legislative authority is given to council members, with no direct administrative offices established. The mayor in this type of city is responsible for hiring and firing staff, may have veto power and is responsible for implementing legislation passed by the council. The mayor is responsible for ceremonial duties, and some cities may give the mayor legislative power as well.
The other two types of local government systems are the council-manager system and the commission system. Few cities use the commission system, but the Council-Manager system has become quite popular. In both of these systems, the mayor has power similar to the council-weak mayor, who may oversee council meetings or even appoint staff, but mainly serves in a ceremonial role [Source: Florida League of Cities].
Even if the mayor in a city doesn't have direct authority, his or her ability to use local politics can lead to more power. Some mayors may use politics to influence council members, or the city manager, to meet their agenda [Source: Romanet].And, of course, a city's citizens have power, too -- if they don't like what the mayor's doing, they can vote him or her out of office.
On the next page, we'll find out how mayors get elected.
As with the duties of mayor, the election process from city to city can vary widely. A city's charter or other city ordinances determine all the number of candidates allowed to run, as well as the primary, general and runoff elections. In order to understand how local politics in cities work, we'll take a look at some examples of elections and campaigns.
Local government elections can resemble national government politics: Campaigning is involved, there are voters, and there are usually many candidates at the beginning. But cities differ greatly on how the overall process is accomplished.
For example, in New Orleans, the 2006 election after Hurricane Katrina brought 21 candidates who competed in one large primary election. In New Orleans, candidates run against each other with no partisan affiliation [Source: Brox]. A unitary primary election is held, in which the candidate who receives the majority of the vote wins the mayoral position. If no candidate receives the majority, which happened in 2006, then a runoff election is held for the top two candidates from the unitary primary.
In most council-mayor systems, the voters directly vote for the mayor. These elections are usually referred to as at-large elections. However, some cities leave the role of electing a mayor in the hands of the council members. Although most mayors are elected directly by the voters, their term length may vary from city to city. In cities like Columbia, S.C., the mayor serves a term of four years, while in Houston, Texas, the mayor only serves a term of two years.
Mayors usually must reside in their city for at least one year before filing to run for the office. Some cities may require a longer residency before a person can become mayor. Campaigning during an election may be similar to national campaigns. Candidates raise large sums of money and spend it on advertising and voter contact, and at the same time strive for name recognition among voters, which is one of most important factors of wining an election. Although the breakdown of voting, primaries, length of residence and other factors may differ from national politics, basic campaigning is still very similar.
On the next page, we'll take a look at the organizational structure of a mayor's office.