The Mayor of West Palm Beach, Florida is a nonpartisan office that is the head of the executive branch of West Palm Beach's government. The type of government is Mayor-Commission. Powers and duties of the mayor include approving the agenda of and presiding over the meetings of the city commission, the ability to veto the city commission votes, including line-item vetoes in regards to the city budget, but vetoes can be overrode with a 4-1 vote. The mayor and city manager both have supervisory powers over the city's departments. Additionally, the mayor may initiate investigations involving the city of West Palm Beach.[1] Since 1991, mayors have been popularly elected to four-year terms.[2] City Hall is located at 401 Clematis Street, with the mayor's office on the second floor.[3]
| Mayor of the City of West Palm Beach | |
|---|---|
 Seal of West Palm Beach | |
Incumbent since April 4, 2019Keith James | |
| Residence | West Palm Beach, Florida |
| Term length | Four years |
| Inaugural holder | John S. Earman |
| Formation | 1894 |
| Salary | $125,000 |
| Website | https://www.wpb.org/our-city/mayor-s-office |
On November 6, 1894, the day after West Palm Beach was incorporated, voters elected John S. Earman as the first mayor. Beginning in 1919, the city operated under a council–manager form of government, with the mayor elected to the city commission and selected by other members of that body to serve a one-year term. The mayor served as a chairperson of the commission and had far less power than the city manager.[4] A referendum in March 1991 resulted in a transition to a directly elected strong mayor.[5] The first modern election for mayor occurred in November 1991, resulting in Nancy M. Graham becoming the city's first strong mayor.[6] The current mayor is Keith James, who was elected on March 12, 2019.[7]
Early mayors (1894–1919)
edit| Name[4] | Start of term[4] | End of term[4] | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| John S. Earman | 1894 | 1896 | |
| J. F. Lamond | 1896 | 1897 | |
| Marion Eugene "M. E." Gruber | 1897 | 1898 | |
| Wilmon Whilldin | 1898 | 1899 | |
Richard J. Chillingworth |
1899 | 1901 | Grandfather of Curtis Chillingworth, who was murdered in 1955 while serving as state judge[8] |
| Louis W. Burkhardt | 1901 | 1901 | |
George G. Currie |
1901 | 1904 | |
| William I. Metcalf | 1904 | 1905 | |
George B. Baker |
1905 | 1907 | |
| J. T. DeBerry | 1907 | 1909 | |
| George W. Potter | 1909 | 1910 | |
| James B. McGinley | 1910 | 1912 | |
| C. S. Anderson | 1912 | 1914 | |
| Murray D. Carmichael | 1914 | 1916 | Later served in the Florida House of Representatives[9] |
| W. A. Dutch | 1916 | September 22, 1919[10] |
Council-manager government mayors (1919–1991)
edit| Name[4] | Start of term[4] | End of term[4] | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| David F. Dunkle | September 22, 1919[10] | September 8, 1921[11] | |
| Murray D. Carmichael | September 8, 1921[11] | 1922 | Later served in Florida House of Representatives |
| L. Garland Biggers | 1922 | 1923 | |
| Joseph Mandel | 1923 | 1924 | First Jewish mayor[12] |
| Henry Stephen Harvey | 1924 | 1926 | |
| Spencer T. Lainhart | 1926 | 1927 | |
| J. C. McCreary | 1927 | 1928 | |
| Vincent Oaksmith | 1928 | 1929 | |
John R. Beacham |
1930 | 1931 | Later became President of the Florida Senate[13] |
| Elza B. Donnell | 1931 | 1933 | |
| Charles B. Watkins | 1933 | 1934 | |
| Paschal C. "Pat" Reese | 1934 | 1935 | |
| F. Theodore "Ted" Brown | 1935 | 1937 | |
| Sanford D. "Sam" Morris | 1937 | 1939 | |
| Ernest Metcalf | 1939 | 1940 | |
| Ronald V. Ware | 1940 | 1941 | |
| Willis H. "Bill" Hitt | 1941 | 1942 | |
| J. O. Bowen | 1942 | 1943 | |
| Vincent Oaksmith | 1943 | 1944 | |
| George H. McCampbell | 1944 | 1945 | Brother of S. Perry McCampbell[14] |
| Stanley Peeler | 1945 | 1946 | |
| E. Tinsley Halter | 1946 | 1947 | |
| Willis H. "Bill" Hitt | 1947 | 1948 | |
| Lloyd C. Bell | 1948 | 1949 | |
| William P. "Bill" Holland | 1949 | 1950 | |
| L. Thomas Keating | 1950 | 1951 | |
| Hustin V. McMillan | 1951 | 1952 | |
| H. Elmo Robinson | 1952 | 1953 | |
| S. Perry McCampbell | 1953 | 1954 | Brother of George H. McCampbell[14] |
| Elias V. "Jack" Faircloth | 1954 | 1955 | |
| C. Harold Earnest | 1955 | 1956 | |
| Maurice E. "Buster" Holley | 1956 | 1957 | |
| Elias V. "Jack" Faircloth | 1957 | 1958 | |
| Horace S. Miller | 1958 | 1959 | |
| William P. "Bill" Holland | 1959 | 1960 | |
| Percy I. Hopkins, Jr. | 1960 | 1961 | |
| Ray G. "Uncle Bim" Behm | 1961 | 1961 | Served three days[4] |
| Percy I. Hopkins, Jr. | 1961 | 1962 | |
| C. Ben Holleman | 1962 | 1963 | |
| Robert "Bob" Hawkey | 1963 | 1963 | Served for about two weeks[4] |
| Ray G. "Uncle Bim" Behm | 1963 | 1964 | |
| Fred O. Easley, Jr. | 1964 | 1966 | |
| C. Harold Earnest | 1966 | 1967 | |
|
1967 | 1968 | Served in the Florida House of Representatives from 1977–1978 and 1981–1982[9] |
| David H. Brady | 1968 | 1969 | |
| Eugene W. Potter | 1969 | 1970 | |
| Fred O. Easley, Jr. | 1970 | 1971 | |
| Francis H. Foster, Jr. | 1971 | 1972 | |
| M. P. "Ham" Anthony | 1972 | 1973 | |
| G. Ray Sparks, Jr. | 1973 | 1974 | |
| Fred O. Easley, Jr. | 1974 | 1975 | |
| Richard E. Linn | 1975 | 1976 | |
| James M. Adams | 1976 | 1977 | |
| M. P. "Ham" Anthony | 1977 | 1978 | |
| Helen Wilkes | 1978 | 1980 | First woman to serve as mayor[15] |
| James M. Adams | 1980 | 1981 | |
| Michael D. Hyman | 1981 | 1982 | |
| Eva W. Mack | 1982 | 1984 | First African American mayor[16] |
| Dwight Baber | 1984 | 1985 | |
| Carol Roberts | 1985 | 1986 | Served on the canvassing board for the 2000 Florida election recount and the Democratic Party nominee for Florida's 22nd congressional district in 2002[17] |
| Samuel A. Thomas | 1986 | 1987 | |
| Richard V. Reikenis | 1987 | 1988 | |
| Pat Pepper Schwab | 1988 | 1989 | |
| James O. Poole | 1989 | 1991 | |
| John F. "Jeff" Koons | 1991 | 1991 | Served for eight months[4] |
Strong mayor (1991–present)
edit| Name | Start of term | End of term | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nancy M. Graham | November 1991[4] | March 25, 1999[18] | First strong mayor[4] |
|
March 25, 1999[18] | March 27, 2003[19] | Lost re-election[19] |
|
March 27, 2003[19] | March 31, 2011[20] | Served in the Florida House of Representatives (1987–2003) and the U.S. House of Representatives (2013–present)[9][21] |
|
March 31, 2011[20] | April 4, 2019[22] | |
_(1).jpg)
|
April 4, 2019[7] | Incumbent |
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ "Give West Palm a Strong Mayor". The Palm Beach Post. March 10, 1991. p. 1E. Retrieved March 21, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Eliot Kleinberg (March 7, 2015). "Stakes high in West Palm Beach Mayor race". The Palm Beach Post. West Palm Beach, Florida. Archived from the original on October 22, 2016. Retrieved March 21, 2022.
- ^ "Directory of City Departments". West Palm Beach, Florida: City of West Palm Beach. Retrieved April 21, 2016.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l H. J. Roberts (December 1994). West Palm Beach Centennial Reflections. West Palm Beach, Florida: Sunshine Sentinel Press. ISBN 1884243029.
- ^ Earl Daniels and Fred Lowery (March 13, 1991). "Strong Mayor Gets Nod". Sun-Sentinel. Archived from the original on September 13, 2015. Retrieved April 21, 2016.
- ^ "Graham Elected Mayor". Sun-Sentinel. West Palm Beach, Florida. November 20, 1991. Archived from the original on March 3, 2017. Retrieved April 21, 2016.
- ^ a b Terri Parker (March 13, 2019). "Keith James elected as new mayor of West Palm Beach". WPBF. Retrieved March 21, 2022.
- ^ "Portrait of Richard Jolley Chillingworth". Tallahassee, Florida: State Library and Archives of Florida. Retrieved April 21, 2016.
- ^ a b c Robert L. Ward (August 2011). Membership of the Florida House of Representatives by County 1845-2012 (PDF) (Report). Tallahassee, Florida: Florida House of Representatives. pp. 221, 224. Retrieved April 21, 2016.
- ^ a b "Capt. D. F. Dunkle Chosen Mayor of West Palm Beach by Commission". The Palm Beach Post. September 23, 1919. p. 1. Retrieved June 23, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b "New Administration Takes Reins of City". The Palm Beach Post. September 9, 1921. p. 4. Retrieved March 21, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "The Jewish Community and Congregation". West Palm Beach, Florida: Historical Society of Palm Beach County. Retrieved April 21, 2016.
- ^ Sessions of the Florida Senate From Statehood, 1845-present (PDF) (Report). Tallahassee, Florida: Florida Senate. March 2016. p. 8. Retrieved April 21, 2016.
- ^ a b Joseph C. Nunes (January 24, 1989). "Former Mayor George H. Mccampbell". Sun-Sentinel. Archived from the original on December 1, 2015. Retrieved April 21, 2016.
- ^ Marisa Gottesman (October 9, 2015). "Helen Wilkes, 88, first female mayor of West Palm Beach". Sun-Sentinel. Retrieved April 21, 2016.
- ^ Steve Nichol (June 5, 1998). "Eva Mack, 81, Public Health Activist". Sun-Sentinel. Archived from the original on May 10, 2017. Retrieved April 21, 2016.
- ^ "Republicans projected to retain House". CNN. Washington, D.C. November 6, 2002. Retrieved April 21, 2016.
- ^ a b Cindy Glover (March 24, 1999). "West Palm Beach Voters Pick Joel Daves To Lead Them". Sun-Sentinel. West Palm Beach, Florida. Archived from the original on December 9, 2014. Retrieved April 21, 2016.
- ^ a b c J. Christopher Hain (March 18, 2003). "Tearful Supporters Bid Farewell to Daves". The Palm Beach Post. p. 1B. Retrieved March 21, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b Andrew Abramson (March 31, 2011). "New Mayor Muoio sworn in; "My doors will be open," she tells public". The Palm Beach Post. Archived from the original on May 11, 2017. Retrieved March 21, 2022.
- ^ "Biography - U.S. Representative Lois J. Frankel (FL-22)". United States House of Representatives. Retrieved April 21, 2016.
- ^ "West Palm Mayor Muoio delivers her final state of the city". WPTV. January 24, 2019. Retrieved March 21, 2022.
