Mayor of Philadelphia

Mayor of Philadelphia
Seal of the City of Philadelphia
Incumbent Cherelle Parker since January 1, 2024
Term length	four years limited to two consecutive terms
Inaugural holder	Humphrey Morrey
Formation	1691
Salary	$218,000
Website	Office of the Mayor

The mayor of Philadelphia is the chief executive of the government of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, ^[1] as stipulated by the Charter of the City of Philadelphia. The current mayor of Philadelphia is Cherelle Parker, who is the first woman to hold the position.

History

18th century

The first mayor of Philadelphia was Humphrey Morrey, who was appointed to the position by William Penn, the founder of the city and the colonial-era Province of Pennsylvania, which became the state of Pennsylvania following the American Revolutionary War. Penn subsequently appointed Edward Shippen under the city charter of 1701. The Philadelphia City Council then elected Shippen to a second term. Subsequent mayors, who held office for one year, were elected by the Philadelphia City Council. The initial mayors of Philadelphia were not compensated and candidates sometimes objected strongly to being selected to the position, sometimes choosing even to pay a fine rather than serve in the position.

In 1704, alderman Griffith Jones was elected but declined to serve, for which he was fined twenty pounds. In 1706, Thomas Story, also an alderman, was similarly fined for refusing office.

In 1745, Abraham Taylor, a Philadelphia alderman, was fined thirty pounds for refusing to assume the office. The city council then elected Joseph Turner, who also refused and was likewise fined. ^[2] Others who refused election included Richard Hill (1717), Issac Norris (1722), John Mifflin, and Alexander Stedman. In other cases, William Coxe pleaded illness (1758), Samuel Mifflin (1761), William Coxe and Daniel Benezet (1762), and John Barclay and George Roberts (1792). Robert Wharton declined in 1800 and 1811, and ended up 14 one-year terms, making him the most-often-elected (16 times, including refusals) and longest-serving (14 years) mayor in Philadelphia history. ^[3]

In 1747, at the request of retiring Mayor William Attwood, Council resolved to institute an annual salary of 100 pounds for the office. ^[2] The same year, Anthony Morris secretly fled to Bucks County to avoid being notified of his election as the city's mayor. When he could not be located after three days of searching, a new election was scheduled, and Attwood was reelected to a second term.

19th century

In 1826, the Philadelphia City Council altered its protocols for electing a mayor, permitting any Philadelphia citizen to run for the office. Beginning in 1839, mayors were elected by popular vote. If no candidate won a majority of the popular vote, then the joint Councils (Select and Common) determined the winner between the two leading candidates. John Swift was the first mayor to be elected directly by the people in the 1840 Philadelphia mayoral election.

The term of office for the mayor was extended to two years in 1854, to three years in 1861, and to four years in 1885. The Act of 1885 also prohibited mayors from succeeding themselves. ^[4]

20th century

The consecutive term limitation for mayor was lifted in the 1940s, which permitted incumbent Bernard Samuel to run for reelection. In 1951, the city's Home Rule Charter established a two-term limit for Philadelphia mayors. ^[4] The term limit is consecutive, not lifetime.

The mayor of Philadelphia has been held by Democrats for over seven decades, since 1952. The only Republican who has been competitive in the general election for mayor since then was Sam Katz, who came within half a percentage point of being the first Republican mayor of Philadelphia elected in 1999.

List of Mayors

Parties

   Democratic (18)    Democratic-Republican (4)    Federalist (6)    Keystone (1)    National Republican (2)    Republican (19)    Whig (5)

Colonial mayors elected by the Common Council

No.	Mayor	Term start	Term end	Mayorship	Term [5]
1	Humphrey Morrey	May 20, 1691	October 25, 1701	1	1
2	Edward Shippen I	October 25, 1701	October 24, 1702	2	2
		October 24, 1702	October 5, 1703		3
3	Anthony Morris I	October 5, 1703	October 3, 1704	3	4
4	Griffith Jones	October 3, 1704	October 2, 1705	4	5
5	Joseph Willcox	October 2, 1705	October 1, 1706	5	6
6	Nathan Stanbury	October 1, 1706	October 7, 1707	6	7
7	Thomas Masters	October 7, 1707	October 5, 1708	7	8
		October 5, 1708	October 4, 1709		9
8	Richard Hill	October 4, 1709	October 3, 1710	8	10
9	William Carter	October 3, 1710	October 2, 1711	9	11
10	Samuel Preston	October 2, 1711	October 7, 1712	10	12
11	Jonathan Dickinson	October 7, 1712	October 6, 1713	11	13
12	George Roach	October 6, 1713	October 5, 1714	12	14
(8)	Richard Hill	October 5, 1714	October 4, 1715	13	15
		October 4, 1715	October 2, 1716		16
		October 2, 1716	October 1, 1717		17
(11)	Jonathan Dickinson	October 1, 1717	October 7, 1718	14	18
		October 7, 1718	October 6, 1719		19
13	William Fishbourn	October 6, 1719	October 4, 1720	15	20
		October 4, 1720	October 3, 1721		21
		October 3, 1721	October 2, 1722		22
14	James Logan	October 2, 1722	October 1, 1723	16	23
15	Clement Plumsted	October 1, 1723	October 6, 1724	17	24
16	Isaac Norris	October 6, 1724	October 5, 1725	18	25
17	William Hudson	October 5, 1725	October 4, 1726	19	26
18	Charles Read	October 4, 1726	October 3, 1727	20	27
19	Thomas Lawrence I	October 3, 1727	October 2, 1728	21	28
		October 2, 1728	October 7, 1729		29
20	Thomas Griffitts	October 7, 1729	October 6, 1730	22	30
		October 6, 1730	October 6, 1731		31
21	Samuel Hasell	October 6, 1731	October 3, 1732	23	32
		October 3, 1732	October 2, 1733		33
(20)	Thomas Griffitts	October 2, 1733	October 1, 1734	24	34
(19)	Thomas Lawrence I	October 1, 1734	October 7, 1735	25	35
22	William Allen	October 7, 1735	October 5, 1736	26	36
(15)	Clement Plumsted	October 5, 1736	October 4, 1737	27	37
(20)	Thomas Griffitts	October 4, 1737	October 3, 1738	28	38
23	Anthony Morris II	October 3, 1738	October 2, 1739	29	39
24	Edward Roberts	October 2, 1739	October 7, 1740	30	40
(21)	Samuel Hasell	October 7, 1740	October 6, 1741	31	41
(15)	Clement Plumsted	October 6, 1741	October 5, 1742	32	42
25	William Till	October 5, 1742	October 4, 1743	33	43
26	Benjamin Shoemaker	October 4, 1743	October 2, 1744	34	44
27	Edward Shippen III	October 2, 1744	October 1, 1745 [a]	35	45
28	James Hamilton	October 1, 1745	October 7, 1746	36	46
29	William Attwood	October 7, 1746	October 6, 1747 [b]	37	47
		October 9, 1747	October 4, 1748		48
30	Charles Willing	October 4, 1748	October 3, 1749	38	49
(19)	Thomas Lawrence I	October 3, 1749	October 2, 1750	39	50
31	William Plumsted	October 2, 1750	October 1, 1751	40	51
32	Robert Strettell	October 1, 1751	October 3, 1752	41	52
(26)	Benjamin Shoemaker	October 3, 1752	October 2, 1753	42	53
(19)	Thomas Lawrence I	October 2, 1753	April 25, 1754 [c]	43	54
(30)	Charles Willing	April 25, 1754	October 1, 1754	44	55
		October 1, 1754	December 4, 1754 [c]		56
(31)	William Plumsted	December 4, 1754	October 7, 1755	45	57
		October 7, 1755	October 5, 1756		58
33	Attwood Shute	October 5, 1756	October 4, 1757	46	59
		October 4, 1757	October 3, 1758 [d]		60
34	Thomas Lawrence II	October 15, 1758	October 2, 1759	47	61
35	John Stamper	October 2, 1759	October 7, 1760	48	62
(26)	Benjamin Shoemaker	October 7, 1760	October 6, 1761 [e]	49	63
36	Jacob Duché	October 6, 1761	October 5, 1762 [f]	50	64
37	Henry Harrison	October 5, 1762	October 4, 1763	51	65
38	Thomas Willing	October 4, 1763	October 2, 1764	52	66
(34)	Thomas Lawrence II	October 2, 1764	October 1, 1765	53	67
39	John Lawrence	October 1, 1765	October 7, 1766	54	68
		October 7, 1766	October 6, 1767		69
40	Isaac Jones	October 6, 1767	October 4, 1768	55	70
		October 4, 1768	October 3, 1769		71
41	Samuel Shoemaker	October 3, 1769	October 2, 1770	56	72
		October 2, 1770	October 1, 1771		73
42	John Gibson	October 1, 1771	October 6, 1772	57	74
		October 6, 1772	October 5, 1773		75
43	William Fisher	October 5, 1773	October 4, 1774	58	76
44	Samuel Rhoads	October 4, 1774	October 5, 1775	59	77
45	Samuel Powel	October 5, 1775	July 4, 1776 [g]	60	78

Post-independence mayors elected by the common council

No.	Mayor		Term start	Term end	Party [4]	Mayorship	Term [5]
(45)		Samuel Powel	April 11, 1789	April 12, 1790	Federalist	61	79
46		Samuel Miles	April 12, 1790	April 13, 1791	Federalist	62	80
47		John Barclay	April 13, 1791	April 13, 1792 [h]	Federalist	63	81
48		Matthew Clarkson	April 13, 1792	April 3, 1793	Federalist	64	82
			April 3, 1793	April 15, 1794			83
			April 15, 1794	April 6, 1795			84
			April 6, 1795	May 5, 1796			85
			May 5, 1796	October 18, 1796			86
49		Hilary Baker	October 18, 1796	October 17, 1797	Federalist	65	87
			October 17, 1797	October 16, 1798			88
50		Robert Wharton	October 16, 1798	October 11, 1799	Federalist	66	89
			October 11, 1799	October 21, 1800 [i]			90
51		John Inskeep	October 21, 1800	October 16, 1801	Federalist [j]	67	91
52		Matthew Lawler	October 16, 1801	October 19, 1802	Democratic- Republican	68	92
			October 19, 1802	October 18, 1803			93
			October 18, 1803	October 16, 1804			94
			October 16, 1804	October 15, 1805			95
(51)		John Inskeep	October 15, 1805	October 21, 1806	Federalist	69	96
(50)		Robert Wharton	October 21, 1806	October 20, 1807	Federalist	70	97
			October 20, 1807	October 18, 1808			98
53		John Barker	October 18, 1808	October 17, 1809	Democratic- Republican	71	99
			October 17, 1809	October 16, 1810			100
(50)		Robert Wharton	October 16, 1810	October 15, 1811 [k]	Federalist	72	101
54		Michael Keppele	October 15, 1811	October 20, 1812	Democratic- Republican	73	102
(53)		John Barker	October 20, 1812	October 19, 1813	Democratic- Republican	74	103
55		John Geyer	October 19, 1813	October 18, 1814	Democratic- Republican	75	104
(50)		Robert Wharton	October 18, 1814	October 17, 1815	Federalist [6]	76	105
			October 17, 1815	October 15, 1816			106
			October 15, 1816	October 21, 1817			107
			October 21, 1817	October 20, 1818			108
			October 20, 1818	October 19, 1819			109
56		James N. Barker	October 19, 1819	October 17, 1820	Democratic- Republican [6]	77	110
(50)		Robert Wharton	October 17, 1820	October 16, 1821	Federalist [6]	78	111
			October 16, 1821	October 15, 1822			112
			October 15, 1822	October 21, 1823			113
			October 21, 1823	October 19, 1824			114
57		Joseph Watson	October 19, 1824	October 18, 1825	National Republican	79	115
			October 18, 1825	October 18, 1826			116
			October 18, 1826	October 16, 1827			117
			October 16, 1827	October 21, 1828			118
58		George M. Dallas	October 21, 1828	April 15, 1829 [l]	Democrat	80	119
59		Benjamin W. Richards	April 15, 1829	October 20, 1829	Democratic	81	120
60		William Milnor	October 20, 1829	October 19, 1830	National Republican	82	121
(59)		Benjamin W. Richards	October 19, 1830	October 18, 1831	Democratic	83	122
			October 18, 1831	October 16, 1832			123
61		John Swift	October 16, 1832	October 15, 1833	Whig	84	124
			October 15, 1833	October 21, 1834			125
			October 21, 1834	October 20, 1835			126
			October 20, 1835	October 18, 1836			127
			October 18, 1836	October 17, 1837			128
			October 17, 1837	October 16, 1838			129
62		Isaac Roach	October 16, 1838	October 15, 1839	Democratic	85	130

Mayors chosen by popular election

No.		Image	Mayor	Term start	Term end	Party	Mayorship	Term [5]
(61)			John Swift	October 15, 1839	October 20, 1840	Whig	86	131
				October 20, 1840	October 19, 1841			132
63			John M. Scott	October 19, 1841	October 18, 1842	Whig	87	133
				October 18, 1842	October 10, 1843			134
				October 10, 1843	October 15, 1844			135
64			Peter McCall	October 15, 1844	October 21, 1845	Whig	88	136
(61)			John Swift	October 21, 1845	October 20, 1846	Whig	89	137
				October 20, 1846	October 19, 1847			138
				October 19, 1847	October 17, 1848			139
				October 17, 1848	October 16, 1849			140
65			Joel Jones	October 16, 1849	October 15, 1850	Democratic [m]	90	141
66			Charles Gilpin	October 15, 1850	October 21, 1851	Whig	91	142
				October 21, 1851	October 19, 1852			143
				October 19, 1852	October 18, 1853			144
				October 18, 1853	June 13, 1854			145

Mayors elected following the Act of Consolidation

No.		Image	Mayor	Term start	Term end	Party	Mayorship	Term [n]
67			Robert T. Conrad	June 13, 1854	May 13, 1856	Whig [o]	92	146
68			Richard Vaux	May 13, 1856	May 11, 1858	Democratic	93	147
69			Alexander Henry	May 11, 1858	May 8, 1860	Republican	94	148
				May 8, 1860	January 1, 1863 [p]			149
				January 1, 1863	January 1, 1866			150
70			Morton McMichael	January 1, 1866	January 1, 1869	Republican	95	151
71			Daniel M. Fox	January 1, 1869	January 1, 1872	Democratic	96	152
72			William S. Stokley	January 1, 1872	January 1, 1875	Republican	97	153
				January 1, 1875	January 1, 1878			154
				January 1, 1878	April 4, 1881			155
73			Samuel G. King	April 4, 1881	April 7, 1884	Democratic	98	156
74			William B. Smith	April 7, 1884	April 4, 1887	Republican	99	157
75			Edwin H. Fitler	April 4, 1887	April 6, 1891 [q]	Republican	100	158
76			Edwin S. Stuart	April 6, 1891	April 1, 1895	Republican	101	159
77			Charles F. Warwick	April 1, 1895	April 3, 1899	Republican	102	160
78			Samuel H. Ashbridge	April 3, 1899	April 6, 1903	Republican	103	161
79			John Weaver	April 6, 1903	April 1, 1907	Republican	104	162
80			John E. Reyburn	April 1, 1907	December 4, 1911	Republican	105	163
81			Rudolph Blankenburg	December 4, 1911	January 3, 1916	Keystone [r]	106	164
82			Thomas B. Smith	January 3, 1916	January 5, 1920	Republican	107	165
83			J. Hampton Moore	January 5, 1920	January 7, 1924	Republican	108	166
84			W. Freeland Kendrick	January 7, 1924	January 2, 1928	Republican	109	167
85			Harry A. Mackey	January 2, 1928	January 4, 1932	Republican	110	168
(83)			J. Hampton Moore	January 4, 1932	January 6, 1936	Republican	111	169
86			Samuel D. Wilson	January 6, 1936	August 19, 1939 [c]	Republican	112	170
87			George Connell	August 9, 1939	January 1, 1940	Republican	113	171
88			Robert E. Lamberton	January 1, 1940	August 22, 1941 [c]	Republican	114	172
89			Bernard Samuel	August 22, 1941	January 3, 1944 [s]	Republican	115	173
				January 3, 1944	January 5, 1948			174
				January 5, 1948	January 7, 1952			175

Mayors elected under the Home Rule Charter of 1951

No.		Image	Mayor	Term start	Term end	Party	Mayorship	Term [t]
90			Joseph S. Clark Jr.	January 7, 1952	January 2, 1956	Democratic	116	176
91			Richardson Dilworth	January 2, 1956	January 4, 1960	Democratic	117	177
				January 4, 1960	February 13, 1962 [u]			178
92			James Tate	February 13, 1962	January 6, 1964	Democratic	118	179
				January 6, 1964	January 1, 1968			180
				January 1, 1968	January 3, 1972			181
93			Frank Rizzo	January 3, 1972	January 5, 1976	Democratic	119	182
				January 5, 1976	January 7, 1980			183
94			William J. Green III	January 7, 1980	January 2, 1984	Democratic	120	184
95			Wilson Goode	January 2, 1984	January 4, 1988	Democratic	121	185
				January 4, 1988	January 6, 1992			186
96			Ed Rendell	January 6, 1992	January 1, 1996	Democratic	122	187
				January 1, 1996	January 3, 2000			188
97			John F. Street	January 3, 2000	January 5, 2004	Democratic	123	189
				January 5, 2004	January 7, 2008			190
98			Michael Nutter	January 7, 2008	January 2, 2012	Democratic	124	191
				January 2, 2012	January 4, 2016			192
99			Jim Kenney	January 4, 2016	January 7, 2020	Democratic	125	193
				January 7, 2020	January 1, 2024			194
100			Cherelle Parker	January 2, 2024	incumbent	Democratic	126	195

See also

• Philadelphia portal

• History of Philadelphia
• Timeline of Philadelphia

Notes

1. Alexander Taylor and Joseph Turner refused election to the office of mayor.
2. After Attwood's first term, Anthony Morris II was elected mayor but fled to avoid taking office. Attwood was elected to a second term three days later.
3. Died in office.
4. John Mifflin, Alexander Stedman, and William Coxe refused election.
5. Samuel Mifflin refused election.
6. William Coxe and Daniel Benezet refused election.
7. When the American Revolution began, the state abolished the city government, including the office of mayor.
8. John Barclay and George Roberts declined election.
9. Wharton declined reelection to a third term in 1800.
10. As the Federalist Party collapsed in Pennsylvania, many Philadelphia politicians, including Inskeep, identified themselves as "Federal Republicans".
11. Wharton declined reelection to a sixth term in 1811.
12. Resigned to become the United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.
13. Jones was a Democrat elected with the support of the Know Nothing party.
14. In 1854, the entire county was consolidated into the city, and the mayoral term was extended to two years.
15. Conrad was a Whig elected with the Know Nothings' support.
16. In 1861, the mayoral term was extended to three years.
17. In 1887, the mayoral term was extended to four years. Mayors could not serve consecutive terms.
18. Blankenburg was elected on the Keystone Party ticket with the support of the Democrats.
19. During Samuel's first term, the prohibition on consecutive mayoral terms was removed.
20. Under the City Charter of 1951, the mayor is limited to two consecutive, four-year terms.
21. Resigned to run for governor.

References

1. "Mayors of Philadelphia". Phila.gov. Archived from the original on 22 Feb 2021. Retrieved 2016-02-19.
2. John Thomas Scharf, Thompson Westcott, History of Philadelphia, 1609–1884, Lippincott, Phila., 1884.
3. Committee of Seventy's Historical List of Philadelphia Mayors Archived 2007-03-10 at the Wayback Machine
4. "Timeline: A look back at Philly's mayors". Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved 2018-03-12.
5. Philadelphia 2012.
6. Young 1898, pp. 206–207.

Sources

Books

• Young, John Russell (1898). Memorial History of the City of Philadelphia. New York, New York: New York History Company.

Websites

• "Mayors of Philadelphia". City of Philadelphia. 13 January 1998. Retrieved 2019-12-22. Official Philadelphia Government list

External links

• Office of the Mayor