Austin has had a variety of forms of government during its rich history. This page provides a brief summary of each of these forms.

1840-1909: Mayor – Alderman Form of Government

The City of Austin was chartered on December 27, 1839, when the Fourth Texas Congress passed an act providing for its incorporation.

On January 13, 1840, Edwin Waller was elected as the first Mayor. Austin’s first governing body consisted of the Mayor and eight Aldermen.

Documentation of the Ward System appears in the 1878 City Code Book under Article 3 of the City Charter. The Charter stated that Austin would be divided into ten Wards that were fixed by the City Aldermen and the number of Aldermen could change "from time to time as they shall see fit, having regard to the number of free white male inhabitants."

In 1891, a Charter Amendment stipulated that the City would be divided into no more than eleven Wards. The City Council would consist of a Mayor and a Board of Aldermen. The Board would consist of two members from each Ward who would be chosen by citizens in their respective Ward.

A 1901 charter amendment allowed for the Alderman Board to be comprised of fourteen members: seven members were elected – one from each of seven wards; seven members were elected at-large. This went into effect with the election of April, 1903. "At-large" means the members represent the entire city, rather than a subset of the citizens.

1909-1926: Commission Form of Government

The Texas Legislature enacted a Charter for the City of Austin in 1909. That Charter provided for five City Commissioners elected at-large to serve two-year terms on a plurality basis. All candidates’ names were listed on the ballot. A voter was permitted to vote for five candidates and the top five voter-getters were elected. (This is referred to as “plurality,” which means the candidate with the most votes wins, even if that candidate did not receive a majority of all votes cast.) The members selected a Mayor from among themselves.

1926-Present: Council-Manager Form of Government

In 1924, Austin adopted the Council-Manager form of government through a Charter Amendment vote of 2,463 in favor to 2,423 against.

In 1953, as part of a major restructuring, the Charter was amended to provide for the election of City Council Members by place designation and to require a majority vote. Places 1 through 5 were created. ("Place designation" means that a candidate runs for a particular seat and is opposed only by the candidates who run for that seat. In Austin, the places are designated by number. There is no correlation to geographic areas in the community. A "majority vote" requirement means that a candidate must receive more than half of all the votes cast for that place to win. If no candidate has a majority, then the top two vote-getters face each other in a run-off election.)

The Council was comprised of the Mayor and four Council Members until 1967, when the Charter was amended, increasing the number to six Council Members and the Mayor.

On April 5, 1969, voters approved a Charter Amendment changing Place 7 to the Mayoral seat effective April 3, 1971. This allowed voters to directly elect the Mayor versus the Mayor being chosen by Council Members.

On January 19, 1985, voters approved an amendment to the Charter to stagger Council Members’ terms and to increase the terms to three years, beginning May 15, 1985. The staggered three-year terms were proposed to pair with single-member districts, but the district amendment failed. ("Staggered" means that the terms of members are designed to overlap so that only a part of the City Council will stand for election at one time. In Austin, the terms are staggered so that in one year, three members are elected. The next year, four members including the Mayor are elected. And the next year, no members are elected. The cycle then repeats.)

On May 7, 1994, voters approved an amendment to the Charter to limit the terms of Mayor and Council to two consecutive terms, unless the candidacy is supported by a petition of five percent of the qualified voters.

On May 13, 2006, voters approved the amendment of the Charter to increase the term limits for Mayor and Council to three consecutive terms. The term limit is in effect unless the candidacy for an additional term is supported by a petition of five percent of the qualified voters.

Austin’s current system provides for:

• A Mayor and six Council Members
• All members elected at-large
• All members elected by majority vote to numbered seats
• Three-year staggered terms
• Term limit of no more than three consecutive terms, unless there is a petition