The mayor is the highest authority of a city council or municipality.
Mayor is the position held by the highest authority of a municipality or town hall . The mayor, in this way, is the highest-ranking public official in a municipal administration.
For example: "In the midst of the corruption scandal, the mayor presented his resignation" , "Tomorrow the mayor will lead the inauguration of a new public school" , "The former mayor of the city will present himself as a candidate for deputy in the next national elections .
The mayor throughout history
The figure of the mayor changed throughout history . In ancient times, it was common for the mayor to be a corregidor or a judge .
Since the development of democracy, the mayor became an official elected through voting and with functions delimited by the Constitution .
Your duties and powers
The duties and powers of the mayor depend on the regional legal organization, as does the method of election. Depending on the city in question, the mayor may or may not be re-elected and govern for periods that usually extend from four to six years.
The position of mayor can be called different depending on the region. In Argentina , the equivalent figure is that of mayor , which is the authority that occupies the highest level in the hierarchy of a municipality. The exception is the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires , where the most important official is called Head of Government .
If we focus on the Brazilian territory, the municipalities are in charge of the mayors , while in Mexico the municipal president is the most important figure at that level.
The responsibilities of a mayor vary by region.
Requirements to become mayor
Among the basic requirements to access this important government position are the following:
- Having reached the age of majority.
- Have the citizenship of the country in which you intend to practice.
- Not having ignored military duties.
- Not have any penalty or sentence pending execution or compliance.
- Have the relevant registration on the electoral roll.
- In countries with more than one official language, speak at least two of them.
The list of requirements varies from country to country, but in all cases it is longer. For example, another condition may be that the candidate for mayor has resided in the corresponding municipality for a certain amount of time without interruptions, or that he or she is not in full performance of another paid public position .
Some common functions
As mentioned in previous paragraphs, the country in which we focus the study is decisive when defining the functions of the mayor, as well as any other government figure. For that reason, below are some of the most common:
- He leads the executive body of the local government, which must legally represent the Municipality and is the maximum authority from an administrative point of view.
- In accordance with the provisions of the corresponding law (such as the Organic Law of Municipalities, in Peru), the mayor must call all sessions of the Municipal Council, as well as preside over them and conclude them.
- He is responsible for the execution of all agreements made in the Municipal Council, to which he must also propose various projects that aim to raise the quality of life of the locality for which he oversees.
- He must be responsible for promulgating and publishing all ordinances.
- It is in charge of the formation of the investment program and the comprehensive local sustainable development plan, which must be submitted for approval by the Municipal Council.
- Advocate for the rights and interests of all residents of your locality.