City Mayors: Mayors in Asia and Asia-Pacific

Mayors from Asia and Australia

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Mayors from Asia
and Australia
By Andrew Stevens
with additional research by
Tann vom Hove, Sanjib Dasgupta and Riaz Ali Jalalani

11 January 2010: The forms of local governance in Asia largely reflect the national political culture in a region characterised by decolonisation and the struggle for democracy. Australia and New Zealand however owe much to the British model. The capitals of Cambodia, Indonesia, Japan and Thailand are all led by a governor, while those of Laos and Vietnam are governed by appointed councils.

| Australia | Bangladesh | Cambodia | China | India | Indonesia | Israel | Japan | Laos | Malaysia | Myanmar (Burma) | New Zealand | Pakistan | Philippines | Russia | Singapore | South Korea | Thailand | Turkey | Vietnam |

Australia
695 councils in six states
Mayors’ term of office: varies by state, between one and four years
Election: varies by state, elected or indirectly elected
Responsibilities: environment, health, planning, roads, waste, water
Capital: The Australian Capital Territory of Canberra's Legislative Assembly serves as its municipal administration.
Mayors:
Adelaide: Michael Harbison
Brisbane: Graham Quirk
Gold Coast: Ron Clarke
Melbourne: Robert Doyle
Newcastle: John Tate
Perth: Lisa Scaffidi
Sydney: Clover Moore
Please email us with the names of additional cities and mayors

Bangladesh
493 sub-districts and six city corporations in 64 districts
Mayors’ term of office: five years
Election: indirect
Responsibilities: agriculture, culture, education, emergency services, environment, public safety, registration, roads, waste, water & sewerage
Capital: Dhaka is governed by a city corporation and led by a directly elected mayor.
Mayors:
Chittagong: Mohammad Manjur Alam
Dhaka: Sadeque Hossain Khosa
Khulna: Talukder Abdul Khaleque
Rajshahi: AHM Khairuzzaman Liton
Sylhet: Badar Uddin Ahmed Kamran
Please email us with the names of additional cities and mayors

Cambodia
171 districts, 14 sub-municipalities and four municipalities in 20 provinces
Mayors’ term of office: indefinite
Election: appointed
Responsibilities: environment, planning, public safety, registration, roads, water & sewerage
Capital: The Municipality of Phnom Penh is further divided into seven sub-municipalities for administrative purposes. Its Governor is appointed by the Kingdom of Cambodia.
Mayors:
Phnom Penh: Keb Chutema
Sihanoukville: Sbong Sarath
Please email us with the names of additional cities and mayors

China
374 county cities, 283 prefectural cities, 15 sub-provincial cities and four municipalities in 22 provinces (excluding Taiwan)
Mayors’ term of office: indefinite
Election: appointed
Responsibilities: vary by type but mostly economy, roads and transport
Capital: Beijing is one of the four provincial-level municipalities in China. As well as the city government, the Beijing Communist Party of China Municipal Committee enjoys competence in local functions. The city is also further divided into 16 districts and two counties, each with their own administration, and a further 273 lower tier units, each with their own committee.
Mayors:
Beijing: Guo Jinlong
Chongqing: Wang Hongju
Guangzhou: Wan Qingliang
Nanchang: Hu Xian
Nanjing: Jiang Hongkun
Shanghai: Han Zheng
Shenyang: Li Yingjie
Tianjin: Huang Xingguo
Wuhan: Ruan Chengfa
Yangzhou: Wang Yanwen
Zhengzhou: Zhou Jiancai
Please email us with the names of additional cities and mayors

India
611 districts in 28 states
Mayors’ term of office: one year, renewable
Election: indirect
Responsibilities: (mandatory:) education, health, public safety, registration, roads, water & sewerage
(discretionary:) culture & leisure, housing, social services
Capital: Delhi is federally-administered union territory known as the National Capital Territory, with an elected assembly led by a Chief Minister. For local government purposes however there are three separate arrangements for the city of Delhi (the Municipal Corporation), the government district (New Delhi) and the military zone. It is further divided into nine districts, 27 municipalities, 59 towns and 165 villages.
Chief Ministers & Mayors:
Ahmedabad (Gujarat): Kanaji Thakor (Mayor)
Amritsar: Shawet Malik (Mayor)
Asansol (West Bengal): Mr Tapas Banerjee (Mayor)
Bangalore: S. Subramanya (Mayor)
Bhopal: Shivraj Singh Chouhan (Mayor)
Chennai (Tamil Nadu): M. Subramaniam (Mayor)
Delhi: Mr Kanwar Sain (Mayor)
New Delhi: : Sheila Dikshit (Chief Minister)
Gujarat: Narendra Modi (Chief Minister)
Hyderabad: Banda Karthika Reddy (Mayor)
Karnataka: B. S. Yeddyurappa (Chief Minister)
Kolkata (West Bengal): Bikash Ranjan Bhattacharya (Mayor)
Lucknow (Uttar Pradesh): Abbas Zaidi (Mayor)
Maharashtra: Ashok Chavan (Chief Minister)
Mumbai: Shubha Raul (Mayor)
Nellai (Tirunelveli District, Tamilnadu): A L Subramaniam (Mayor)
Patna: GhanShyam Kumar (Mayor)
Tamil Nadu: M Karunanidhi (Chief Minister)
West Bengal: Buddhadeb Bhattacharya (Chief Minister)
(Additional contribution by Raj Vaithamanithi and Sanjib Dasgupta)
Please email us with the names of additional cities and mayors

Indonesia
480 municipalities and 92 cities in 33 provinces
Mayors’ term of office: five years
Election: direct
Responsibilities: economy, education, health, planning, registration, roads, water
Capital: The Special Capital Region of Jakarta is subdivided into five cities, each headed by an appointed mayor, and one municipality. As Capital Region, Jakatata is led by an elected Governor rather than a mayor.
Mayors:
Bandung: Dada Rosada
Bangkalan: Fuad Amin
Depok: Nur Mahmudi Ismail
Jakarta: Joko Widodo
Metro: Lukman Hakim
Please email us with the names of additional cities and mayors

Israel
144 local councils and 16 cities in six districts
Mayors' term of office: five years
Election: direct
Responsibilities: culture & leisure, education, environment, planning, roads, water & sewerage, welfare
Capital: Jerusalem is one of two city councils in the Jerusalem district.
Mayors:
Haifa: Yona Yahav;
Jerusalem: Nir Barkat Nazareth:
Ramez Jaraisy;
Tel Aviv: Ron Huldai
Please email us with the names of additional cities and mayors

Japan
1,822 municipalities in 47 prefectures
Mayors’ term of office: four years
Election: direct
Responsibilities: education, fire, health, planning, registration, roads, transport, water & sewerage
Capital: Tokyo is both a city and a prefectural government under the two-tier system, therefore the only city to have a Governor rather than a Mayor. However, 23 wards exist beneath the metropolitan government, each with their own mayor and council.
Mayors:
Hiroshima: Kazumi Matsui
Kyoto: Daisaku Kadokawa
Matsuyama: Tokihiro Nakamura
Nagasaki: Tomihisa Taue
Nagoya: Takashi Kawamuraa
Osaka: Toru Hashimoto
Sapporo: Fumio Ueda
Tokyo: Naoki Inose
Yokohama: Fumiko Hayashi
Please email us with the names of additional cities and mayors

Laos
125 districts and one municipality in 16 provinces
Mayors’ term of office: indefinite
Election: appointed
Responsibilities: education, health, public safety, registration (as directed by central government)
Capital: Vientiane consists of five districts and is also the capital of Vientiane province.
Please email us with the names of additional cities and mayors

Malaysia
Nine cities, 34 municipalities and 101 districts in 13 states
Mayors’ term of office: three years, renewable
Election: appointed
Responsibilities: economy, environment, health, planning, roads, transport, waste, water & sewerage
Capital: Kuala Lumpar is a federal territory and is governed by the Federal Territories Ministry, which appoints the city's mayor.
Mayors:
Johot Bahru: Latiff Yusof
Kuala Lumpur: Dato' Ahmed Fuad Ismail
Kuala Simpang: Gan Yee Chee
Kuching South: James Chan
Miri: Dato Wee Han Wen
Shah Alam: Dato' Ramlan Bin Othman
Please email us with the names of additional cities and mayors

Myanmar (Burma)
64 districts in 14 regions/states
Mayors’ term of office: indefinite
Election: appointed
Responsibilities: environment, planning, roads, transport
Capital: Yangon (formerly Rangoon) is the largest city in Myanmar and was the national capital until the government relocated to Nyapyidaw in 2006. The Yangon City Development Committee acts as the city government, though some 33 township committees exist below this. The mayor of Yangon, as with all mayors of Burmese cities, is a figure appointed from the military government.
Mayors:
Naypyidaw: Col. Thein Nyunt
Yangon: Brig. Gen. Aung Thein Lynn
Please email us with the names of additional cities and mayors

New Zealand
73 councils in 12 regions
Mayors’ term of office: three years
Election: direct
Responsibilities: culture & leisure, environment, planning, public safety, roads
Capital: the City of Wellington is one of nine councils covered by the Wellington Regional Council.
Mayors:
Auckland: Len Brown
Christchurch: Bob Parker
Hamilton: Bob Simcock
New Plymouth: Harry Duynhoven
Palmerston North: Jono Naylor
Wellington: Celia Wade Brown
Please email us with the names of additional cities and mayors

Pakistan
6,022 union councils, 337 town councils and 96 districts/city districts in four provinces
Mayors’ term of office: four years
Election: direct
Responsibilities: agriculture, culture & leisure, education, health, roads, water & sewerage
Capital: Islamabad is the federal Capital Territory and consists of 40 union councils. The Capital Development Authority provides city-wide services.
Mayors:
Faislabad: Rana Zahid Tauseef
Islamabad: Kamran Lashari
Karachi: Syed Mustafa Kamal
Lahore: Mian Amir Mahmood
Sukkur: Syed Nasir Hussain Shah
Tando Allahyar: Rahila Magsi
Tharparkar: Arbab Anwar
Additional research by Riaz Ali Jalalani
Please email us with the names of additional cities and mayors

Philippines
1,494 municipalities and 136 cities in 81 provinces
Mayors’ term of office: three years
Election: direct
Responsibilities: economy, environment, public services, welfare
Capital: The National Capital Region of Manila is run by 16 separate cities (including the Capital District Manila itself) and one municipality. Some of the cities, especially Quezon and Marikina, are among the country's largest. The Metropolitan Manila Development Authority is responsible for many functions in the capital and is under the direct control of the President, with the Metro Manila Council (which consists of the 17 mayors) providing some oversight.
Mayors:
Cebu City: Tomas R Osmena
Davao City: Rodrigo R Duterte
Makati: Jejomar Binay
MANILA: Alfredo S Lim
Marikina: Marides Fernando
Naga City: Jesse Robredo
Quezon: Sonny Belmonte
San Fernando: Oscar Samson Rodriguez
Talisay City: Eric M. Saratan
Please email us with the names of additional cities and mayors

Russia
12,215 municipalities and two federal cities in 83 federal states
Mayors' term of office: four years
Election: direct (St. Petersburg appointed)
Responsibilities: varies across the federation, according to negotiated charters, though most deal with education and the local environment.
Capital: Moscow, one of two federal cities, is divided into 123 districts, each with their own elected mayor. It is not part of the Moscow Oblast (state).
Mayors:
Ekaterinburg: Arkadiy Tchernetskiy
Kaliningrad: Alexandr Yaroshuk
Kazan: Ilsur Metshin
Moscow: Yury Luzhkov
Novosibirsk: Vladimir Gorodetsky
St. Petersburg: Valentina Matviyenko
Vladivostok: Yevgeny Pushkaryov
Please email us with the names of additional cities and mayors

Singapore
City state
Mayors’ term of office: indefinite
Election: appointment by the Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports
Responsibilities: social services
Capital: there is no capital to speak of as such, but five area-based Community Development Councils exist. However, it is stressed that they are not 'local government' but a community function to assist the needs of local residents and strengthen civil society.

South Korea
158 districts, 74 cities and six metropolitan cities in nine provinces
Mayors’ term of office: four years
Election: direct
Responsibilities: culture & leisure, education, health, public safety, social services, waste, water & sewerage
Capital: Seoul Metropolitan Government is the only special city within the three-tier system and is further divided into 25 wards.
Mayors:
Daegu: Kim Bum-il
Gyeongju: Baek Sang Seung
Gimpo: Gyeonguu Kang
Gyeryong: Hong-Mook Choi
Seoul: Oh Se-hoon
Please email us with the names of additional cities and mayors

Thailand
140 towns, 23 cities and two special cities in 75 provinces
Mayors’ term of office: four years
Election: direct
Responsibilities: fire, leisure, public health, public safety, transport, waste, water & sewerage, welfare
Capital: Bangkok is one of two special cities and is led by an elected Governor and the Bangkok Metropolitan Council. The Metropolitan Area is further divided into 50 districts, each with a chief appointed by the Governor.
Mayors:
Bangkok: Sukhumbhand Paribatra
Pattaya: Ittipol Khunplome
Please email us with the names of additional cities and mayors

Turkey
923 districts in 81 provinces
Mayors' term of office: five years
Election: direct
Responsibilities: education, health, planning, transport, welfare
Capital: The Metropolitan Municipality of Ankara is the political capital of Turkey and consists of the mayor and eight districts. It is also capital of the Ankara province.
Mayors:
Adana: Aytaç Durak
ANKARA: Melih Gökçek
Bornova, (Izmir): Prof Dr Kamil Okyay Sindir
Istanbul: Kadir Topbas
Konya: Tahir Akyürek
Please email us with the names of additional cities and mayors

Vietnam
10,925 communes, 519 districts, 53 towns, 25 cities and five municipalities in 58 provinces
Mayors’ term of office: five years, limited to two terms
Election: indirect
Responsibilities: culture & leisure, economy, education, environment, health, planning, public safety, welfare (as directed by central government)
Capital: Hanoi is governed by a People's Committee, led by a Chairman, both drawn from its People's Council. Both are subordinate to the city's Communist Party. The city is further divided into 29 districts.
Mayors:
Hanoi: Nguyen Quoc Trieu
Ho Chi Minh City: Pham Phuong Thao
Please email us with the names of additional cities and mayors

Note: where possible common definitions (structures and responsibilities) have been provided