Mayor of Charlottesville

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The mayor of Charlottesville is the president of the City Council, as stipulated by the Charter of the City of Charlottesville. The mayor of Charlottesville as of 2022 was Lloyd Snook. [1]

A mayor in the council-manager system is the symbolic head of the city - "a first among equals" on the city council. The mayor must use influence more than official power in order to drive the city’s policy agenda. In the city’s system of government, the city manager is in charge of all operations, while the mayor, who is elected every two years by the council, is primarily responsible for managing council meetings.

The Mayor's Role in Municipal Government

In the city's council-manager form of government, the mayor is the leader of the city council but has no greater official authority than any other council member. The city council under the mayor’s leadership is the legislative body for the city while the city manager is the executive. The city council hires the manager to implement the laws and policies it adopts. The manager directs the staff in carrying out the city’s day-to-day operations. The manager also serves as the council’s top policy advisor.

When the city manager needs to communicate critical information to the city council, the mayor is the first person the manager contacts. From there, the manager may contact the other council members, or the mayor may disseminate the information. It depends on the relationships between the mayor, manager, and council members. Examples of critical information may include an officer-involved shooting, a department head’s resignation, rumors of an imminent lawsuit against the city, or a workplace safety accident.

The mayor is the figurehead of the council and is elected by the council for a two-year term. The council has authority to impose a fine on the mayor or even vote to remove him/her from the office of mayor. [2]Because city managers are hired, not elected, they can lose their position if a majority of the 5-member council decide it is time for a change.

History

Charlottesville was chartered in 1762 to serve as the new county seat of Albemarle County. Charlottesville incorporated as a town in 1801. In 1851, the Virginia General Assembly amended and enlarged the corporate authority of the town of Charlottesville to include election of a mayor and alderman - and who could vote. The first election of a Mayor and four aldermen of Charlottesville was held on the February 28, 1852. Charlottesville was incorporated as a city in 1888.

In 1888, R. F. Harris is elected mayor of the City of Charlottesville, the first person to hold that office. [3]

With the 1922 election, the city abandon the method of electing their mayor at-large and their councilmembers by wards. From 1922 to 1928 the city adopted the commission-manager form of government by which the three member commission was elected at-large as the legislative body; from among the commission, the commission elected the mayor. The city operated under a county-like structure with a city council vested with both legislative and executive authority with each commissioner/councilman also heading an executive department. The commission appointed a business manager

Prior to September 1, 1922, the City of Charlottesville utilized a strong mayor-council government. In this form of municipal government, the council (elected from 4 wards) served as the city's primary legislative body while the mayor (elected at-large) served as the city's chief executive.

From 1928 to present, the city has operated under the council-manager form of government, featuring five members elected at-large, a mayor, who officially represents the city on the state, national, and international levels. However, unlike in a strong mayor-council government, the mayor is a regular voting member of city council with little or no legal privileges that may distinguish them from other council members.

List of mayors - current form of government

Since 1922, under the commission and the council-manager forms of government, the mayoralty and city council hold the same offices. The president of the council serves as mayor and is first among equals on the city council, which acts as a legislative body while executive functions are performed by the appointed city manager. The mayor chairs the city council meetings, but lacks any special legislative powers. The mayor and city council serve part-time, with day-to-day administration in the hands of a professional city manager.

Prior to 1922, under the mayor-council system, the mayoralty and city council were separate offices.
See also: List of City Councilors
Form # Council President (mayor) Term start Term end Terms Party
Commission 1 John R. Morris September 1, 1922 August 31, 1924 1 Democratic
Commission 2 J. Y. Brown September 1, 1924 August 31, 1930 3 Democratic
Council-Manager 3 Fred L. Watson September 1, 1930 August 31, 1932 1 Democratic
Council-Manager 4 F. W. Twyman September 1, 1932 August 31, 1934 1 Democratic
Council-Manager 5 W. Dan Haden September 1, 1934 August 31, 1938 3 Democratic
Council-Manager 6 George T. Huff September 1, 1938 August 31, 1940 1 Democratic
Council-Manager (5) W. Dan Haden September 1, 1940 August 31, 1942 3 Democratic
Council-Manager 7 J. E. Gleason September 1, 1942 August 31, 1944 1 Democratic
Council-Manager 8 Roscoe S. Adams September 1, 1944 August 31, 1946 2 Democratic
Council-Manager 9 Gus K. Tebell September 1, 1948 August 31, 1950 1 Democratic
Council-Manager 10 Strother F. Hamm September 1, 1950 August 31, 1952 1 Democratic
Council-Manager 11 William R. Hill September 1, 1952 August 31, 1954 1 Democratic
Council-Manager 12 Sol B. Weinberg September 1, 1954 August 31, 1956 1 Democratic
Council-Manager 13 R. M. Davis September 1, 1956 August 31, 1958 1 Democratic
Council-Manager 14 Thomas J. Michie September 1, 1958 August 31, 1960 1 Democratic
Council-Manager 15 Louis L. Scribner September 1, 1960 August 31, 1962 1 Democratic
Council-Manager 16 Bernard J. Haggerty September 1, 1962 August 31, 1964 1 Democratic
Council-Manager 17 Lindsey B. Mount September 1, 1964 August 31, 1966 1 Democratic
Council-Manager 18 Burkett A. Reynolds September 1, 1966 August 31, 1968 1 Democratic
Council-Manager 19 "Dutch" Vogt September 1, 1968 August 31, 1970 1 Republican
Council-Manager 20 Mitchell Van Yahres September 1, 1970 August 31, 1972 1 Democratic
Council-Manager 21 Francis H. Fife July 1, 1972 June 30, 1974 1 Democratic
Council-Manager 22 Charles Barbour July 1, 1974 June 30, 1976 1 Democratic
Council-Manager 23 Nancy K. O'Brien July 1, 1976 June 30, 1978 1 Democratic
Council-Manager 24 Laurence Brunton July 1, 1978 June 30, 1980 1 Republican
Council-Manager 25 Frank Buck July 1, 1980 August 31, 1988 4 Democratic
Council-Manager 26 "Bitsy" Waters September 1, 1988 August 31, 1990 1 Democratic
Council-Manager 27 Alvin Edwards September 1, 1990 August 31, 1992 1 Democratic
Council-Manager 28 Tom Vandever September 1, 1992 August 31, 1994 1 Democratic
Council-Manager 29 David Toscano September 1, 1994 August 31, 1996 1 Democratic
Council-Manager 30 Kay Slaughter September 1, 1996 August 31, 1998 1 Democratic
Council-Manager 31 Virginia Daugherty July 1, 1998 July 3, 2000 1 Democratic
Council-Manager 32 Blake Caravati July 3, 2000 July 1, 2002 1 Democratic
Council-Manager 33 Maurice Cox July 1, 2002 July 1, 2004 1 Democratic
Council-Manager 34 David Brown July 1, 2004 January 7, 2008 2 Democratic
Council-Manager 35 Dave Norris January 7, 2008 January 3, 2012 2 Democratic
Council-Manager 36 Satyendra Huja [4] January 3, 2012 December 31, 2015 2 Democratic
Council-Manager 37 Mike Signer January 1, 2016 December 31, 2017 1 Democratic
Council-Manager 38 Nikuyah Walker January 1, 2018 December 31, 2021 2 Independent
Council-Manager 39 Lloyd Snook January 6, 2022 1 Democratic
Council-Manager 40 Juandiego Wade January 2, 2024 1 Democratic

References

  1. Web. Snook selected to serve as Charlottesville Mayor, Sean Tubbs, News Article, January 6, 2022, retrieved January 8, 2022.
  2. Web. Charlottesville mayor apologizes to City Council and residents, The Washington Post, August 30, 2017 at 7:02 p.m. EDT, retrieved March 28, 2021.
  3. Web. Yesteryears: For Charlottesville's first mayor, Christmas season 1886 ended with a bang, David Maurer, Daily Progress, Lee Enterprises, retrieved December 8, 2013. Charlottesville incorporated as a city in 1888. The first city charter provided for a biennially elected mayor and twelve member board of aldermen (three alderman were elected from each of the four wards)
  4. Web. Charlottesville City Council meeting minutes, .pdf, Council Chambers, City of Charlottesville, January 3, 2012.

External links

Mayor of Charlottesville on wikipedia