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.

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