In the city of Bloomington, the job of mayor is not ceremonial.
That’s different from many cities across America, which use the council-manager form of local government.
In cities that use a council-manager style of government, the city council hires a city manager to oversee the city’s administration and operations, including the appointment of department heads.
The mayor in a council-manager system will typically preside over city council meetings and serve as the city’s representative on various formal occasions. That’s why the council-manager form of local government is sometimes called a weak-mayor system.
But Bloomington is a strong-mayor city, where it’s the mayor who oversees the operations of city government and hires the department heads.
This year, Bloomington voters will elect a new mayor to a four-year term. Incumbent John Hamilton has announced he is not seeking re-election.
So it’s worth putting some time into learning about the candidates and making an effort to vote. Continue reading “Column: In Bloomington, serving as mayor is a big job, so get ready to vote”