The Phoenix City Council is the
governing body
A governing body is a group of people that has the authority to exercise governance over an organization or political entity. The most formal is a government, a body whose sole responsibility and authority is to make binding decisions in a taken ...
of the city of
Phoenix, Arizona
Phoenix ( ; nv, Hoozdo; es, Fénix or , yuf-x-wal, Banyà:nyuwá) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Arizona, with 1,608,139 residents as of 2020. It is the fifth-most populous city in the United States, and the on ...
. The council is made up of nine members, including a mayor and eight council members representing individual districts. While
the mayor is elected in a citywide election, city council members are elected by votes only in the districts they represent, with both the mayor and council members serving four year terms.
The current mayor of Phoenix is
Kate Gallego
Katharine Sarah Gallego (née Widland, born October 21, 1981) is an American politician serving as the 62nd mayor of Phoenix, Arizona since 2019. A member of the Democratic Party, she previously served on the Phoenix City Council from 2014 t ...
, a
Democrat
Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to:
Politics
*A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people.
*A member of a Democratic Party:
**Democratic Party (United States) (D)
**Democratic ...
, who won the seat after defeating her former fellow-council member, Daniel Valenzuela in a run-off election in March 2019. In setting city policy and passing rules and regulations, the mayor and city council members each have equal voting power.
History
Before 1948, the city of Phoenix was governed by
commission. In 1948, the system was changed to a city council with a mayor selected in a
run-off election
The two-round system (TRS), also known as runoff voting, second ballot, or ballotage, is a voting method used to elect a single candidate, where voters cast a single vote for their preferred candidate. It generally ensures a majoritarian resu ...
in non-partisan elections. In 1982, the election system was changed so that councilors represented districts.
Members
References
{{reflist, 30em
Politics of Arizona
Government of Phoenix, Arizona
City councils in the United States
1948 establishments in Arizona