| Mayor of the City of Wichita | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Term length | Four years, renewable once |
| Inaugural holder | Edwin Bird Allen |
| Formation | 1871 |
| Website | Mayor's Office |
The mayor of the City of Wichita is the head of the executive branch of the Wichita, Kansas city government. The mayor serves a four-year term and is limited to two successive terms. [1]
Following is a list of mayors of the American city of Wichita, Kansas. [2] As of 2024, there have been 82 people who have served as mayor of Wichita in 104 administrations.
| Number | Person | Image | Mayor | Years | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | Edwin Bird Allen | 1871–1872 | Elder brother of mayor Joseph P. Allen [3] | |
| 2 | 2 | James G. Hope (1st term) | 1873–1874 | [3] | |
| 3 | 3 | George E. Harris | 1875 | [3] | |
| 4 | (2) | James G. Hope (2nd term) | 1876–1877 | [3] | |
| 5 | 4 | William Greiffenstein (1st term) | 1878 | [3] | |
| 6 | 5 | Sol H. Kohn | 1879 | First Jewish mayor of Wichita [3] | |
| 7 | (4) | William Greiffenstein (2nd term) | 1879–1884 | [3] | |
| 8 | 6 | Benajah W. Aldrich | 1885–1886 | [3] | |
| 9 | 7 | Joseph P. Allen | 1887–1888 | [3] | |
| 10 | 8 | George W. Clement | 1889–1890 | [3] | |
| 11 | 9 | John B. Carey | 1891–1892 | [3] | |
| 12 | 10 | Lindley Murray Cox | 1893–1896 | [3] | |
| 13 | 11 | Finlay Ross (1st term) | 1897–1900 | [3] | |
| 14 | 12 | Benjamin Franklin McLean (1st term) | 1901–1904 | [4] [3] | |
| 15 | (11) | Finlay Ross (2nd term) | 1905–1906 | [3] | |
| 16 | 13 | John H. Graham (1st term) | 1907–1908 | [3] | |
| 17 | 14 | Charles Lock Davidson | 1909–1910 | [3] | |
| 18 | (13) | John H. Graham (2nd term) | April 1911 – Sept 1911 | Lost recall election in September 1911 [3] | |
| 19 | 15 | William Walter Minick | 1911–1912 | [3] | |
| 20 | 16 | William Jasper Babb | 1913–1914 | [3] | |
| 21 | 17 | Orsemus Hills Bentley | 1915–1916 | [3] | |
| 22 | 18 | Lewis William Clapp | 1917–1919 | Resigned on October 3, 1919 to become City Manager [5] | |
| 23 | 19 | John Lee Powell | 1919–1920 | [5] | |
| 24 | 20 | Wallace C. Kemp | 1921–1922 | [5] | |
| 25 | 21 | George Henry Hamilton | 1922 | [5] | |
| 26 | 22 |  | William Coffin Coleman | 1922–1923 | [5] |
| 27 | (12) | Benjamin Franklin McLean (2nd term) | 1923–1924 | [5] | |
| 28 | 23 | Frank Leslie Dunn (1st term) | 1924–1925 | [5] | |
| 29 | 24 | Ben F. Copley | 1925–1926 | [5] | |
| 30 | 25 | Frank Nighswonger (1st term) | 1926–1927 | [5] | |
| 31 | 26 | A.J. Coombs | 1927–1928 | [5] | |
| 32 | (23) | Frank Leslie Dunn (2nd term) | 1928–1929 | [5] | |
| 33 | 27 | Charles S. Lawrence (1st term) | 1929–1930 | [5] | |
| 34 | 28 | Herman A. Hill | 1930–1931 | [5] | |
| 35 | (25) | Frank Nighswonger (2nd term) | 1931–1932 | [5] | |
| 36 | 29 | Harry D. Cottman | 1932–1933 | [5] | |
| 37 | (27) | Charles S. Lawrence (2nd term) | 1933–1934 | [5] | |
| 38 | 30 | James Schuyler Crawford | 1934–1935 | [5] | |
| 39 | (25) | Frank Nighswonger (3rd term) | 1935–1936 | [5] | |
| 40 | 31 | Robert E. Israel | 1936–1937 | [5] | |
| 41 | 32 | T. Walker Weaver | 1937–1938 | [5] | |
| 42 | 33 | Elmer R. Corn (1st term) | 1938–1939 | [5] | |
| 43 | 34 | Frank W. Coleman (1st term) | 1939–1940 | [5] | |
| 44 | (33) | Elmer R. Corn (2nd term) | 1940–1941 | [5] | |
| 45 | 35 | John I. Dotson | 1941–1942 | [5] | |
| 46 | 36 | Odom Farrell Sullivan | 1942–1943 | [5] | |
| 47 | 37 | Eugene Calendar Moriarty | 1943–1944 | [5] | |
| 48 | 38 | Herman William Beuttel | 1944–1945 | [5] | |
| 49 | 39 | Phil H. Manning | 1945–1946 | [5] | |
| 50 | (34) | Frank W. Coleman (2nd term) | 1946–1947 | [5] | |
| 51 | 40 | Charles S. Ritchie | 1947–1948 | [5] | |
| 52 | 41 | Louis August Donnell (1st term) | 1948–1949 | [5] | |
| 53 | 42 | William Christian Salome, Jr. (1st term) | 1949–1950 | [5] | |
| 54 | 43 | Earl K. Duke | 1950–1951 | ||
| 55 | 44 | Floyd Throckmorton Amsden | 1951–1952 | ||
| 56 | 45 | Frank Russell Jump | 1952–1953 | ||
| 57 | 46 | Walter M. Keeler | 1953–1954 | ||
| 58 | (42) | William Christian Salome Jr. | 1954 (2nd term) | [5] | |
| 59 | (41) | Louis August Donnell (2nd term) | 1954–1955 | [5] | |
| 60 | 47 | Claude M. DeVorss | 1955–1956 | ||
| 61 | 48 | Hugh David Lester | 1956 | ||
| 62 | 49 | Alfred E. Howse | 1956–1957 | ||
| 63 | 50 | Elzie E. Baird | 1957–1958 | ||
| 64 | 51 | James L. Gardner | 1958–1959 | ||
| 65 | 52 | Justus H. Fugate | 1959–1960 | ||
| 66 | 53 | Levi Budd Rymph | 1960–1961 | ||
| 67 | 54 | Herbert Piper Lindsley | 1961–1962 | ||
| 68 | 55 | Carl A. Bell, Jr. | 1962–1963 | ||
| 69 | 56 | Gerald F. Byrd | 1963–1964 | ||
| 70 | 57 | Vincent L. Bogart | 1964–1965 | ||
| 71 | 58 | William D. Tarrant | 1965–1966 | ||
| 72 | 59 | John S. Stevens | 1966–1967 | ||
| 73 | 60 | Clarence Eldert Vollmer | 1967–1968 | ||
| 74 | 61 | William D. Anderson Jr. | 1968–1969 | ||
| 75 | 62 | Donald K. Enoch | 1969–1970 | ||
| 76 | 63 |  | A. Price Woodard Jr. | 1970–1971 | First African–American mayor. [6] |
| 77 | 64 | Jack H. Greene | 1971–1972 | ||
| 78 | 65 | Glenn J. "Jack" Shanahan | 1972–1973 | ||
| 79 | 66 | James M. Donnell (1st term) | 1973–1974 | ||
| 80 | 67 | Garry L. Porter | 1974–1975 | ||
| 81 | 68 |  | Connie Ames Peters Kennard (1st term) | 1975–1976 | First woman commissioner and first woman mayor [7] |
| 82 | (66) | James M. Donnell (2nd term) | 1976–1977 | ||
| 83 | 69 |  | Antonio F. "Tony" Casado (1st term) | 1977–1978 | First Latino (Cuban) mayor of Wichita |
| 84 | (68) | | Connie Ames Peters Kennard (2nd term) | 1978–1979 | |
| 85 | (69) | | Antonio F. "Tony" Casado (2nd term) | 1979–1980 | |
| 86 | 70 | Robert G. Knight (1st term) | 1980–1981 | ||
| 87 | 71 | Robert C. Brown (1st term) | 1981–1982 | ||
| 88 | 72 |  | Albert J. Kirk | 1982–1983 | |
| 89 | 73 |  | Margalee Wright | 1983–1984 | |
| 90 | (70) | Robert G. Knight (2nd term) | 1984– April 9, 1985 | ||
| 91 | 74 | Kathlien Edmiston | April 9, 1985 – April 9, 1985 | Edmiston was elected in a 3-1 vote to the City Commission on February 12, 1985 to serve the remaining two-month term through April 9 of commissioner Margalee Wright who resigned to serve on the Kansas Corporation Commission. [8] Mayor Robert Knight resigned on April 2, 1985 [9] in order for Edmiston to hold the office of mayor until the swearing of two new commissioners [10] so that she might have the honor of serving as mayor. Knight was unaware that he was required to provide a week's notice making April 9 the earliest she could be sworn in, the same day the new commissioners took office. She was sworn in on April 9. [10] After the newly elected commissioners were sworn in shortly after, a vote was held and Robert C. Brown was elected as the next mayor. [10] Edmiston held the office of mayor for approximately 30 minutes. [10] | |
| 92 | (71) | Robert C. Brown (2nd term) | 1985–1986 | ||
| 93 | (69) | | Antonio F. "Tony" Casado (3rd term) | 1986–1987 | |
| 94 | (70) | Robert G. Knight (3rd term) | 1987–1988 | ||
| 95 | 75 | Sheldon Kamen | 1988–1989 | ||
| 96 | (70) | Robert G. Knight (4th term) | 1989–1992 | ||
| 97 | 76 | Frank M. Ojile | 1992–1993 | ||
| 98 | 77 |  | Elma Broadfoot | 1993–1995 | [11] [12] |
| 99 | (70) | Robert G. Knight (5th term) | 1995–2003 | ||
| 100 | 78 | Carlos Mayans | 2003–2007 | ||
| 101 | 79 |  | Carl Brewer | 2007–2015 | First elected African–American mayor |
| 102 | 80 |  | Jeff Longwell | 2015–2020 | |
| 103 | 81 |  | Brandon Whipple | 2020–2024 | |
| 104 | 82 |  | Lily Wu | 2024-Present | First elected Asian-American mayor |
Wichita is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Kansas and the county seat of Sedgwick County. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 397,532. The Wichita metro area had a population of 647,610 in 2020. It is located in south-central Kansas on the Arkansas River.
Samuel Dale Brownback is an American attorney, politician, and diplomat who served as a United States senator from Kansas from 1996 to 2011 and as the 46th governor of Kansas from 2011 to 2018. A member of the Republican Party, Brownback also served as the United States Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom during the administration of President Donald Trump and was a candidate for the Republican nomination for President in 2008.
Kathleen Sebelius is an American politician who served as the 21st United States Secretary of Health and Human Services from 2009 until 2014. As Secretary of Health and Human Services, Sebelius was instrumental in overseeing the implementation of the Affordable Care Act. Before becoming secretary, she served as the 44th governor of Kansas from 2003 to 2009, the second woman to hold that office. She is a member of the Democratic Party. Sebelius was the Democratic respondent to the 2008 State of the Union address and is chair-emerita of the Democratic Governors Association. She is CEO of Sebelius Resources LLC.
Daniel Robert Glickman is an American politician, lawyer, lobbyist, and nonprofit leader. He served as the United States secretary of agriculture from 1995 until 2001 in the Clinton administration. He previously represented Kansas's 4th congressional district as a Democrat in the U.S. House of Representatives for 18 years.
The Wichita Eagle is a daily newspaper published in Wichita, Kansas, United States. Originating in the early 1870s, shortly after the city's founding, it is owned by The McClatchy Company and is the largest newspaper in Wichita and the surrounding area.
Lawrence–Dumont Stadium, previously known as Lawrence Stadium, was a baseball stadium in Wichita, Kansas, United States. It was located on the northwest corner of McLean Boulevard and Maple Street, along the west bank of the Arkansas River, in the Delano neighborhood of downtown Wichita. The stadium held 6,400 fans and most recently was the home field of the Wichita Wingnuts independent baseball team from 2008 until 2018, and was home to the annual National Baseball Congress World Series from 1935 until 2018.
KWCH-DT is a television station licensed to Hutchinson, Kansas, United States, serving the Wichita area as an affiliate of CBS. It is owned by Gray Television alongside CW affiliate KSCW-DT and maintains studios on 37th Street North in northeast Wichita and a transmitter facility located east of Hutchinson in rural northeastern Reno County. KWCH-DT serves as the flagship of the Kansas Broadcasting System (KBS), a network of four full-power stations that relay CBS network and other programming provided by KWCH across central and western Kansas, as well as bordering counties in Colorado, Nebraska, and Oklahoma.
Wichita is a major center of media in Kansas. The following is a list of media outlets based in the city.
George Richard Tiller was an American physician and abortion provider from Wichita, Kansas. He gained national attention as the medical director of Women's Health Care Services, which, at the time, was one of only three abortion clinics nationwide that provided late-term abortions.
Kim Røntved, known as "the Rocket", is a Danish former professional soccer player and head coach. A 17-time all-star in various leagues, and a fan favorite with the Wichita Wings, he was inducted into the Indoor Soccer Hall of Fame in February 2014.
Carl Brewer was an American politician who served as the 100th mayor of Wichita, Kansas, and was the city's first elected black mayor. He was elected to the mayoralty in 2007 and reelected in 2011.
Albert J. Gebert was an American football player and coach. He served as the 16th head football coach at the University of Wichita—now known Wichita State University—in Wichita, Kansas and he held that position for 12 seasons, from 1930 until 1941. His record at Wichita was 68–40–6.
Emil Joseph Kapaun was a Roman Catholic priest and United States Army captain who served as a United States Army chaplain during World War II and the Korean War. Kapaun was a chaplain in the Burma Theater of World War II, then served again as a chaplain with the U.S. Army in Korea, where he was captured. He died in a prisoner of war camp.
Raymond F. Merrick is a Republican former member of the Kansas House of Representatives, representing district 27 from 2013 to 2017. He was elected Speaker of the Kansas House of Representatives in December 2012.
The following is a timeline of the history of the city of Wichita, Kansas, USA.
William D. Jochems was a justice of the Kansas Supreme Court from January 4, 1930 to December 1, 1930.
Sister Mary Irma Hilger was an American religious sister, who trained as a nurse and founded the St. Jude Hospital and nurse's training school on the Caribbean island of St. Lucia. She has been called the "Florence Nightingale of St. Lucia".
The 1985 Wichita State Shockers football team represented Wichita State University in the 1985 NCAA Division I-A football season. The Shockers competed in their 89th season overall and 42nd in the Missouri Valley Conference, playing their home games at Cessna Stadium. The team, led by second-year head coach Ron Chismar, improved on their 2–9 output from the previous season, going 3–8.
Mark Alexander Vargo is an American lawyer and politician who served as the 32nd Attorney General of South Dakota. In June 2022, he was appointed by Governor Kristi Noem to fill the vacancy created by Jason Ravnsborg's impeachment and removal from office. He previously served as the State's Attorney of Pennington County, South Dakota, having left the position in April 2023.
Edwin Bird Allen was an American politician who served as the Secretary of State of Kansas (1885–1889), as a representative in the Kansas House of Representatives, and as the first mayor of Wichita (1871–1872).
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