The

mayor of Los Angeles The mayor of the City of Los Angeles is the official head and chief executive officer of Los Angeles. The officeholder is elected for a four-year term and is term limit, limited to serving no more than two terms. (Under the Constitution of Califo ...

is the chief executive of the Government of Los Angeles as set in the city charter. The current officeholder, the 43rd in the sequence of regular mayors, is Karen Bass, a member of the

Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...

, though the office has been

nonpartisan Nonpartisanism is a lack of affiliation with, and a lack of bias towards, a political party. While an Oxford English Dictionary definition of ''partisan'' includes adherents of a party, cause, person, etc., in most cases, nonpartisan refers sp ...

since 1909. When Los Angeles was founded as a small town, a ''comisionado'' (Military Commissioner) was appointed before the title was changed to ''

alcalde Alcalde (; ) is the traditional Spanish municipal magistrate, who had both judicial and administrative functions. An ''alcalde'' was, in the absence of a corregidor, the presiding officer of the Castilian '' cabildo'' (the municipal council) a ...

'' (Mayor) in 1786. Between 1841 and 1844, there were two mayors called the ''Jueces de Paz'' (

Justices of Peace A justice of the peace (JP) is a judicial officer of a lower or ''puisne'' court, elected or appointed by means of a commission ( letters patent) to keep the peace. In past centuries the term commissioner of the peace was often used with the sa ...

). When the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

took control, the office was renamed to Mayor. The longest serving mayors have been Tom Bradley (1973–1993; 20 years),

Fletcher Bowron Fletcher Bowron (August 13, 1887 – September 11, 1968) was an American lawyer, judge, and politician. He was the 35th mayor of Los Angeles, California, from September 26, 1938, until June 30, 1953. He was at the time the city's longest-serving ...

(1938–1953; 14 years), Sam Yorty (1961–1973; 12 years), and

Eric Garcetti Eric Michael Garcetti (born February 4, 1971) is an American politician who served as the 42nd mayor of Los Angeles from 2013 until 2022. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he was first elected in the 2013 Los An ...

(2013–2022; 9 years). The shortest tenures, not counting Acting Mayors, were

John Bryson John Edgar Bryson (born July 24, 1943) is the former United States Secretary of Commerce, the 37th person to hold the post since its establishment in 1913. Prior to this, he served as the chairman, chief executive officer and president of Edison ...

(77 days), Bernard Cohn (14 days), and William Stephens (11 days). Although the

President of the Los Angeles City Council The President of the Los Angeles City Council is the presiding officer of the Los Angeles City Council. The president presides over meetings of the council and assignments to City Council committees and handles parliamentary duties like ruling mot ...

serves as acting mayor when the Mayor is out of the city, only five have served due to a vacancy: Manuel Requena (1855 and 1856),

Wallace Woodworth Wallace Woodworth (July 28, 1832 – September 13, 1882) was a wealthy businessman and rancher in Los Angeles County, California, in the 19th century. He was a member of the governing bodies of both Los Angeles City and County. He helped organize ...

(1860–1861), Bernard Cohn (1878),

Niles Pease Niles Pease (1838–1921) was a Los Angeles, California, businessman who was president of the Merchants' and Manufacturers' Association in 1903–05 and of the City Council in 1907–10. Life and career Pease was born in Enfield, Connecticut ...

(1909), and Martin F. Betkouski (1916); only one, Cohn, ascended from Acting Mayor to Mayor. Two Mayors have died during their terms:

Henry Mellus Henry Mellus (August 24, 1816 – December 26, 1860) served as the eighth Mayor of Los Angeles from May 9, 1860, to December 26, 1860. He was a successful California businessman. Biography Born in Dorchester, Boston, he was the son of William an ...

and Frederick A. MacDougall. Los Angeles has had five Latino mayors post-incorporation: Antonio F. Coronel, Manuel Requena, Cristobal Aguilar,

Antonio Villaraigosa Antonio Ramón Villaraigosa (; né Villar Jr.; born January 23, 1953) is an American politician who served as the 41st Mayor of Los Angeles from 2005 to 2013. A member of the Democratic Party, Villaraigosa was a national co-chairman of Hillary ...

, and

. The city has also had two African-American mayors, Tom Bradley and Karen Bass. Two French-Canadian politicians,

Damien Marchesseault Damien Marchesseault (or Marchesseau) (April 1, 1818 – January 20, 1868) was the seventh Mayor of Los Angeles from May 9, 1859 to May 9, 1860 and then again from January 7, 1861 to May 6, 1865. Marchesseault assumed the office one last t ...

and Prudent Beaudry, have served as Mayors. The first woman to serve as Mayor is Karen Bass, who was elected in

2022 File:2022 collage V1.png, Clockwise, from top left: Road junction at Yamato-Saidaiji Station several hours after the assassination of Shinzo Abe; 2022 Sri Lankan protests, Anti-government protest in Sri Lanka in front of the Presidential Secretari ...

Spanish era (1781–1821)

The office of ''

Alcalde Alcalde (; ) is the traditional Spanish municipal magistrate, who had both judicial and administrative functions. An ''alcalde'' was, in the absence of a corregidor, the presiding officer of the Castilian '' cabildo'' (the municipal council) a ...

'', the Mayor of El Pueblo de la Reina de los Ángeles, was elected annually, without the right to reelection for two years. With the incomplete nature of records from the Spanish colonial period of Los Angeles, only the first year of 1781 is certain. ;''Comisionado'' ;''Alcalde'' ;Notes

Mexican era (1821–1848)

In 1821, Los Angeles became under

Mexican Mexican may refer to: Mexico and its culture *Being related to, from, or connected to the country of Mexico, in North America ** People *** Mexicans, inhabitants of the country Mexico and their descendants *** Mexica, ancient indigenous people ...

rule, and the city continued having an ''alcalde''. The inaugural holder was

Abel Stearns Abel Stearns (February 9, 1798 – August 23, 1871) was an American trader who came to the Pueblo de Los Angeles, Alta California in 1829 and became a major landowner and cattle rancher and one of the area's wealthiest citizens. Early life Stea ...

, an American trader who came to California in 1829 from

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...

. ;First & Second ''Alcalde'' In 1839, instead of one ''alcalde'', two officials served as First and Second ''Alcalde''. ;''Jueces de Paz'' (Justices of Peace) In 1841, the office of ''alcalde'' was abolished, instead being replaced by two ''Jueces de Paz'' (

Justice of the peace A justice of the peace (JP) is a judicial officer of a lower or ''puisne'' court, elected or appointed by means of a commission ( letters patent) to keep the peace. In past centuries the term commissioner of the peace was often used with the sa ...

). ;First & Second ''Alcalde'' In 1844, the office of ''alcalde'' was restored, reverting to its 1839 posts.

American Territorial era (1848–1850)

Between the

Interim government of California The interim government of California existed from soon after the outbreak of the Mexican–American War in mid-1846 until U.S. statehood in September, 1850. There were three distinct phases: *The first phase was from the beginning of the wartime m ...

and California's statehood, the Mayor was appointed by the

Governor of California The governor of California is the head of government of the U.S. state of California. The governor is the commander-in-chief of the California National Guard and the California State Guard. Established in the Constitution of California, the g ...

in 1848 and was elected in 1850. ;Notes

Post-incorporation (1850–present)

; Notes

Appendices

Mayoral terms and term limits

At the office's creation in 1850, mayors served one year terms. In 1889, the dates were change to be on even-numbered years, with the term extending to two years per term; the first election in an even-numbered year was in 1892. In 1909, the city charter changed the election years to odd-numbered years with the March 1909 election, originally slated to be a

recall election A recall election (also called a recall referendum, recall petition or representative recall) is a procedure by which, in certain polities, voters can remove an elected official from office through a referendum before that official's term of offi ...

against Arthur C. Harper. In 1993, voters amended the city charter to implement term limits to elected officials, including mayor. In 2015, voters passed a charter amendment that would change the election dates to align with gubernatorial and presidential elections on even-numbered years; the first mayoral election after this change was in

Interrupted terms

Eight mayors have had interrupted terms:

Stephen Clark Foster Stephen Clark Foster (December 17, 1820 – January 27, 1898) was a politician, the first American mayor of Los Angeles under United States military rule. Foster served in the state constitutional convention, and was elected to the State Sena ...

(1855 and 1856),

(1860), Cristobal Aguilar (1867), Frederick A. MacDougall (1878),

(1889), Arthur C. Harper (1909), Charles E. Sebastian (1916), and

Frank L. Shaw Frank L. Shaw (February 1, 1877 – January 24, 1958) was the first mayor of a major American city to be recalled from office, in 1938. He was also a member of the Los Angeles City Council and then the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors. His ...

(1938).

References

External links

Office of Mayor website

City of Los Angeles Officials Database
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mayors of Los Angeles

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

Los Angeles-related lists