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In a quiz we ran last week, 66% of respondents thought that our city government runs on a mayor council system — understandable since we do have a mayor and a city council.
23% said city manager (getting warmer), but only 5% answered correctly: Raleigh runs on a council manager system.
When our city was first chartered in 1794, it ran on a city commission model of government with seven elected board members + an intendant of police (a.k.a. mayor). On March 18, 1947, however, residents voted to adopt the council manager system we have today. So what does that mean?
- The city council (comprised of the mayor, two at-large members, and one representative for each of five districts) is responsible for legislation. This includes policy-making and the passing of local ordinances. All positions are elected, part-time, and terms last two years.
- The city manager is appointed by the 8-member council to oversee administration, manage the budget + advise and implement policies. Unlike the city council positions, the city manager job is full-time. Marchell Adams-David was appointed in 2020 and will remain in that role until she resigns or retires — or in the event the city council calls a vote to replace him. You can read more about Ms. Adams-David here.