Wikipedia
List of mayors of West Palm Beach, Florida
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 Keith James since April 4, 2019 | |
| 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)
| 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)
| 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)
| Name | Start of term | End of term | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nancy M. Graham | November 1991[4] | March 25, 1999[18] | First strong mayor[4] |
| Joel Daves | 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] | |
| Jeri Muoio | March 31, 2011[20] | April 4, 2019[22] | |
| Keith James | April 4, 2019[7] | Incumbent |
See also
References
- ^ "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). . 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. Retrieved April 21, 2016.
- ^ "Graham Elected Mayor". Sun-Sentinel. West Palm Beach, Florida. November 20, 1991. 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. 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. 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. 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). . 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.
External links
- Mayor's Page