Mayor of Portland, Oregon facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Mayor of Portland, Oregon
Seal of Portland, Oregon
Incumbent Keith Wilson since January 1, 2025
Style	Mayor
Term length	Four years
Inaugural holder	Hugh O'Bryant
Formation	1851
Salary	$175,463

The mayor of Portland, Oregon is the official leader of the city of Portland, Oregon, in the United States. The mayor is chosen by voters for a four-year term. There is no limit to how many terms a person can serve. In Portland, all elections are nonpartisan, which means candidates do not officially run as members of a political party. The current mayor is Keith Wilson. He started his term on January 1, 2025, after being elected in the 2024 election.

The mayor's term in Portland is four years long. This was changed from two years in 1913. Before 2024, mayoral elections happened in May during US presidential election years. If no candidate won more than half the votes, the top two candidates would have a second election in November. However, starting in 2024, a new system is used. Now, there is one general election in November of presidential election years. This election uses a method called Instant Runoff ranked choice voting. The person elected mayor officially takes office the following January.

What the Mayor Does

Before 2025, Portland used a special type of government called a city commission government. This was unusual for a big city. In this system, the mayor and other leaders, called commissioners, made the city's laws. They also managed different city departments that handled daily tasks. The mayor was the head of this group and decided which departments each commissioner would oversee. The mayor could also declare an emergency and acted as the head of the police.

Starting with the mayor's term in 2025, Portland changed its government style. It now uses a Council-Mayor system. The mayor is the main executive leader. They work with a professional city administrator to carry out the laws made by the city council. The mayor also manages the city's departments, employees, buildings, and money. The mayor creates the city's budget and suggests it to the council for approval. They can also propose new laws to the council and break tie votes if the council members are split.

How Mayors Are Elected

Gallery of the mayors of Portland

The mayor is elected by all voters in the city. Elections now use the instant runoff ranked choice voting method. This system began with the 2024 general election. The city's rules also allow people to vote for write-in candidates. These are people whose names are not officially on the ballot. The mayor serves a four-year term and can be re-elected many times. Even though the office is officially nonpartisan, most candidates do share their political party preference. Mayoral elections happen at the same time as the United States presidential election.

The most recent election was in 2024. In that election, businessman Keith Wilson won against 19 other candidates.

Past Mayors of Portland

#	Image	Name (Born–Died)	Term	Election	Previous Job or Role
1		Hugh O'Bryant (1813–1883)	1851–1852		Officer in the Oregon Riflemen
2		A. C. Bonnell (1801–1875)	April 1852 – November 1852
3		Simon B. Marye (c. 1810–1868)	November 1852 – April 1853
4		Josiah Failing (1806–1877)	1853–1854		Member of the Portland City Council (1852)
5		William S. Ladd (1826–1893)	1854–1855		Member of the Portland City Council (1853)
6		George W. Vaughn (1809–1877)	1855–1856
7		James O'Neill (1824–1901)	1856–1857		Agent for Wells Fargo & Company
8		William S. Ladd (1826–1893)	1857–1858		5th Mayor of Portland (1854-1855)
9		A. M. Starr (c. 1820–1891)	1858–1859		Member of the Portland City Council (1854, 1856)
10		S. J. McCormick (1828–1891)	1859–1860		Delegate to the Oregon Constitutional Convention from Multnomah County
11		G. Collier Robbins (1823–19??)	1860–1861		Member of the Portland City Council (1855, 1858)
12		John M. Breck (1828–1900)	1861–1862		City Assessor of Portland
13		William H. Farrar (1826–1873)	1862–1863		Delegate to the Oregon Constitutional Convention from Multnomah County District Attorney for the Oregon Territory (1853-1859)
14		David Logan (1824–1874)	1863–1864		Member of the Oregon Territorial Legislature from Washington County
15		Henry Failing (1834–1898)	1864 – November 16, 1866
16		Thomas J. Holmes (1819–1867)	1866–1867		Member of the Portland Public Schools Board of Education
17		J. A. Chapman (1821–1885)	1867–1868		Major/Surgeon in the United States Army
18		Hamilton Boyd	1868–1869		Multnomah County Commissioner
19		Bernard Goldsmith (1832–1901)	1869–1871		Director of the Library Association of Portland
20		Philip Wasserman (1828–1895)	1871–1873
21		Henry Failing (1834–1898)	1873–1875		15th Mayor of Portland (1864-1866)
22		J. A. Chapman (1821–1885)	1875–1877		17th Mayor of Portland (1867-1868)
23		William Spencer Newbury (1834–1915)	1877–1879		Mayor of Iola, Kansas (1870)
24		David P. Thompson (1834–1901)	1879–1882		6th Governor of the Idaho Territory (1875-1876)
25		J. A. Chapman (1821–1885)	1882–1885		17th and 22nd Mayor of Portland (1867-1868, 1875-1877)
26		John Gates (1827–1888)	1885 – April 27, 1888 (died in office)		President of the Portland National Bank
27		Van B. DeLashmutt (1842–1921)	May 2, 1888 – 1891
28		William S. Mason (1832–1899)	1891–1894
29		George P. Frank (1852–1896)	1894–1896
30		Sylvester Pennoyer (1831–1902)	1896–1898		8th Governor of Oregon (1887-1895)
31		William S. Mason (1832–1899)	July 1, 1898 – March 27, 1899 (died in office)		28th Mayor of Portland (1891-1894)
32		W. A. Storey (1854–1917)	May 17, 1899 –1900		Member of the Portland City Council (1898-1899)
33		Henry S. Rowe (1851–1914)	1900–1902	1900
34		George Henry Williams (1823–1910)	1902–1905		32nd United States Attorney General (1871-1875)
35		Harry Lane (1855–1917)	1905–1909		Superintendent of the Oregon State Insane Asylum (1887–1891)
36		Joseph Simon (1851–1935)	1909–1911		United States Senator from Oregon (1898-1903)
37		Allen G. Rushlight (1874–1930)	1911–1913		Member of the Portland City Council (1905-1911)
38		H. Russell Albee (1867–1950)	June 1913 – July 1917
39		George L. Baker (1868–1941)	July 1917 – July 1933		Member of the Portland City Commission
40		Joseph K. Carson (1891–1956)	July 1933 – December 31, 1940
41		Earl Riley (1890–1965)	January 1, 1941 – December 31, 1948		Member of the Portland City Commission (1930-1940)
42		Dorothy McCullough Lee (1901–1981)	January 1, 1949 – December 31, 1952		Member of the Portland City Commission (1943-1949)
43		Fred L. Peterson (1896–1985)	January 1, 1953 – December 31, 1956		Member of the Portland City Commission (1941-1952)
44		Terry Schrunk (1913–1975)	January 1, 1957 – January 1, 1973		24th Sheriff of Multnomah County (1949-1956)
45		Neil Goldschmidt (1940–2024)	January 2, 1973 – August 15, 1979		Member of the Portland City Commission (1970-1973)
46		Connie McCready (1921–2000)	September 5, 1979 – November 23, 1980	–	Member of the Portland City Commission (1970-1979)
47		Frank Ivancie (1924–2019)	November 24, 1980 – January 3, 1985	1980	Member of the Portland City Commission (1967-1980)
48		Bud Clark (1931–2022)	January 3, 1985 – January 2, 1993	1984 1988
49		Vera Katz (1933–2017)	January 3, 1993 – January 3, 2005	1992 1996 2000	57th Speaker of the Oregon House of Representatives (1985-1990)
50		Tom Potter (born 1940)	January 3, 2005 – December 31, 2008	2004	38th Chief of the Portland Police Bureau (1990-1990)
51		Sam Adams (born 1963)	January 1, 2009 – December 31, 2012	2008	Member of the Portland City Commission (2005-2009)
52		Charlie Hales (born 1956)	January 1, 2013 – December 31, 2016	2012	Member of the Portland City Commission (1993-2002)
53		Ted Wheeler (born 1962)	January 1, 2017 – December 31, 2024	2016 2020	28th Treasurer of Oregon (2010-2017)
54		Keith Wilson 1962/1963 (age 61–62)	January 1, 2025 – present	2024	CEO of Titan Freight Systems (2010-2017)

Note: The color in the number (#) column shows the mayor's registered political party. Red is for Republican, blue for Democratic, and teal for the People's Party (Populist). Gray means Independent. Even so, mayors officially run and serve without a party label.

The mayor's office in City Hall has portraits of all the mayors so far. As of February 2024, two mayors are missing from this collection. They are William H. Farrar (who served from 1862–1863) and Hamilton Boyd (who served from 1868–1869).

Related Topics

• Government of Portland, Oregon
• History of Portland, Oregon