Mayor of Auckland


The Mayor of Auckland is the directly elected head of the Auckland Council, the local government authority for the Auckland Region in New Zealand, which it controls as a unitary authority. The position exists since October 2010 after the amalgamation of various territorial authorities. The mayor is supported by a deputy mayor.

Role of mayor

The mayor has significant executive powers, their own staff and the ability to appoint the chairpersons of the council's committees. The position was first filled by election on 9 October 2010 for the establishment of the Auckland Council on 1 November 2010. The Council replaced seven territorial authority councils, including the Auckland City Council, and also the Auckland Regional Council. Before 2010, "Mayor of Auckland" was an informal term applied to the Mayor of Auckland City, head of the Auckland City Council.
In the first mayoral election for Auckland Council in 2010, outgoing Mayor of Manukau City Len Brown was elected, defeating outgoing Mayor of Auckland City John Banks, outgoing Mayor of North Shore City Andrew Williams and prominent Christian businessman Colin Craig, amongst others. The mayoral office had a budget of $4.1 million and a staff of 18 in 2011. Brown preferred not to use the honorific "His Worship".
Contenders in the 2013 Auckland mayoral election included Brown, John Minto and John Palino. Brown was re-elected.
Brown announced in November 2015 that he would not contest the 2016 mayoralty election. There were 19 contenders for the position, and Phil Goff won against Victoria Crone, John Palino, and Chlöe Swarbrick.

List of mayors

Role of deputy mayor

The deputy mayor is the second highest elected official in the Auckland Council. The deputy mayor acts in support of the Mayor of Auckland. It is the second highest elected position in the council. However, like the position of Deputy Prime Minister, this seniority does not necessarily translate into power. They are appointed by the mayor from the elected ward councillors. The current deputy mayor is Bill Cashmore, who currently represents the Franklin ward on the Auckland Council. Cashmore was announced as deputy mayor in October 2016, and assumed office upon the swearing in of the new council.
Beyond committees of the whole council, the deputy mayor is an ex-officio member of the following Auckland Council committees:
Like any other councillor, the deputy mayor may be appointed to additional committees which the mayor wishes to appoint them to.

List of deputy mayors