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MAYORS OF THE MONTH
In 2015
Mayor of Seoul, South Korea (04/2015)
Mayor of Rotterdam, Netherlands (03/2015)
Mayor of Houston, USA, (02/2015)
Mayor of Pristina, Kosovo (01/2015)

In 2014
Mayor of Warsaw, Poland, (12/2014)
Governor of Tokyo, Japan, (11/2014)
Mayor of Wellington, New Zealand (10/2014)
Mayor of Sucre, Miranda, Venezuela (09/2014)
Mayor of Vienna, Austria (08/2014)
Mayor of Lampedusa, Italy (07/2014)
Mayor of Ghent, Belgium (06/2014)
Mayor of Montería, Colombia (05/2014)
Mayor of Liverpool, UK (04/2014)
Mayor of Pittsford Village, NY, USA (03/2014)
Mayor of Surabaya, Indonesia (02/2014)
Mayor of Santiago, Chile (01/2014)

In 2013
Mayor of Soda, India (12/2013)
Mayor of Zaragoza (11/2013)
Mayor of Marseille (10/2013)
Mayor of Schwäbisch Gmünd (09/2013)
Mayor of Detroit (08/2013)
Mayor of Moore (07/2013)
Mayor of Mexico City (06/2013)
Mayor of Cape Town (05/2013)
Mayor of Lima (04/2013)
Mayor of Salerno (03/2013)
Governor of Jakarta (02/2013)
Mayor of Rio de Janeiro (01/2013)

In 2012
Mayor of Izmir (12/2012)
Mayor of San Antonio (11/2012)
Mayor of Thessaloniki (10/2012)
Mayor of London (09/2012)
Mayor of New York (08/2012)
Mayor of Bilbao (07/2012)
Mayor of Bogotá (06/2012)
Mayor of Perth (05/2012)
Mayor of Mazatlán (04/2012)
Mayor of Tel Aviv (03/2012)
Mayor of Surrey (02/2012)
Mayor of Osaka (01/2012)

In 2011
Mayor of Ljubljana (12/2011)

World Mayor 2014

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Colombian mayors
and local government

Researched and edited by Alidad Vassigh*

12 August 2012: Colombia is divided into 32 departments (states) and the Bogotá federal district and subdivided into 1,011 municipalities. Departments control their own finances, as well as administration, within the limits set by the constitution. Governors of departments, once appointed by the president, are now elected. Each departmental assembly meets yearly for a session of two months. Assembly members are elected by universal suffrage, one for each 40,000 inhabitants.

The departments have the power to establish municipal districts and to review the acts of the municipal governments to determine their constitutionality. Each municipality has a popularly elected municipal council.

Beginning with the March 1988 elections, mayors are elected for two-year terms, with the exception of the mayor of Bogotá, who is elected to serve a four-year term.

Prior to the March 1988 municipal elections, most major decisions regarding governmental matters in a municipality were made at the departmental level, or at least had to have the approval of the departmental governor. For example, the governor had to approve property and market taxes levied by municipalities. Because of the limited income raised by the municipalities, funds to provide for utilities and other public services also came from the departmental and national governments.

Popularly elected councils (juntas), also elected for two-year terms, assist the mayors in planning public works projects. The councils' functions and powers are so limited, however, that they often do not even bother to meet.

Mayors of the largest cities in Colombia
(Readers are invited to supply information on additional Colombian cities and mayors. Please insert Colombian mayors' into the subject line of any emails.)
City (department),
size and website
Mayor (Mr, Ms)
Elections
Profile
Armenia (Quindío)*;
Population: 321,378 (municipio); (estimate for 2010 cabecera: 281,013)**
www.armenia.gov.co
Luz Piedad Valencia Franco Elected in polls held 30 October 2011, (mayors-elect formally begin work January 2012, term to 2015) Studied industrial engineering and politics; Party: Cambio Radical***
Barranquilla (Atlántico)
Population: 1,386,865 (city website); (est. 2010 cabecera: 1,182,493)
www.barranquilla.gov.co
Elsa Margarita Noguera de la Espriella (Ms) Elected Oct. 2011 Born 1973; Studied economics at the Pontificia Universidad Javeriana, MBA American University Washington DC; financial analyst 2002-6; Party: Cambio Radical;
Bogotá (Distrito Capital)
Population: (est. 2010 cabecera: 7,347,795)
www.bog.gov.co
Gustavo Francisco Petro Urrego (Mr) Elected Oct. 2011 Born 1960; Economist, former Marxist M-19 militant; diplomatic post in Belgium 1990, senator 2006-9.; Party: Progressive list (Progresistas)
Bucaramanga (Santander)
Population est. 2010 cabecera: 517,286
www.bucaramanga.gov.co
Luis Francisco Bohórquez Pedraza (Mr) Elected Oct. 2011 Born 1962; Studied law, public administration; Party: Liberal
Buenaventura (Valle del Cauca)
Population est. 2010 cabecera: 327,955
www.buenaventura.gov.co
Acting mayor Jaime Oswaldo Martínez Appointed after arrest on 18 October 2011 of mayor José Felix Ocoró Minotta on charges relating to abuse of public office/financial malfeasance Ocoró born 1955; was mayor 1995-98
(Santiago de) Cali (Valle del Cauca)
Population: ; (est. 2010 cabecera: 2,207,994)
www.cali.gov.co
Rodrigo Guerrero Velasco (Mr) Elected Oct. 2011 Born 1938; Physician/surgeon, was mayor 1992-4; Party: mayor's party (Alcalde Guerrero)
Cartagena de Indias (Bolívar)
Population: est. 2010 cabecera: 899,200
www.cartagena.gov.co
Campo Elías Terán Dix (Ms) Elected Oct. 2011 Studied hospital administration Antioquia University; lecturer, former mayor San Antero municipality (Córdoba); Party: Alianza Social-independent
Ibagué (Tolima)
Population: est. 2010 cabecera: 496,575;
www.alcaldiadeibague.gov.co
Luis Rodríguez Ramírez (Mr) Elected Oct. 2011 Lawyer, born 1961, previous municipality posts; son of Luis H. Rodríguez, formerly mayor of Ibagué; Party: Liberal
Manizales (Caldas)
Population: est. 2010 cabecera: 361,393
alcaldiamanizales.gov.co
Jorge Eduardo Rojas Giraldo (Mr) Elected Oct. 2011 Born 1973, studied management development at Bogota's Universidad Javeriana, former councilman/municipal posts; Party: Conservative-Partido de la U alliance
Medellín (Antioquia)
Population est. 2010 cabecera: 2,309,446
www.medellin.gov.co
Aníbal Gaviria Correa (Mr) Elected Oct. 2011 Born 1966, studied business administration Medellín's EAFIT University; brother late Antioquia governor Guillermo Gaviria Correa, kidnapped and killed by FARC guerrillas in 2002; Party: Liberal
Montería (Córdoba)
Population: ; (est. 2010 cabecera: 313,593)
monteria-cordoba.gov.co
Carlos Eduardo Correa Escaf (Mr) Elected Oct. 2011 Born 1973, studied business administration EAFIT University Medellín; worked in exports promotion/oil industry.; Party: Conservative
Neiva (Huila)
Population est. 2010 cabecera: 310,902
www.alcaldianeiva.gov.co
Pedro Hernán Suarez Trujillo (Mr) Elected Oct. 2011 Studied oil engineering, public finances; worked private sector 1990s. Mayor for brief periods 1990, 1991 and 1992.; Party: Partido de la U
Palmira (Valle del Cauca);
Population: est. 283,431 (municipio); (est. 2010 cabecera: 236,235)
www.palmira.gov.co
Ritter López (Mr) Elected Oct. 2011 Party: Partido de la U
(San Juan de) Pasto (Nariño)
Population: est. 2010 cabecera: 338,493
www.pasto.gov.co
Harold Guerrero López Partido Elected Oct. 2011 Born 1958, studied management, business; Party: Cambio Radical
Pereira (Risaralda)
Population: 410,535 (city website); (est. 2010 cabecera: 383,623)
www.pereira.gov.co
Enrique Antonio Vásquez Zuleta (Mr) Elected Oct. 2011 Worked in human rights, conflict resolution; justice of the peace (Juez de Paz) 2011-16; Party: Partido de la U -Green alliance;
San José de Cúcuta (Norte de Santander)
Population: est. 2010 cabecera: 597,385
www.alcaldiadecucuta.gov.co
Donamaris Ramírez Paris Lobo (Mr) Elected Oct. 2011; Party: Green;
Santa Marta (Magdalena)
Population est. 2010 cabecera: 425,591
santamarta.magdalena.gov.co
Carlos Eduardo Caicedo Omar (Mr) Elected Oct. 2011 Former left-wing activist, studied law Universidad Nacional; vice-chancellor Universidad del Magdalena in 1997-2006; charged, then detained 2007 for four years on corruption charges that were later dropped.; Party: Liberal
Soacha (Cundinamarca)
Population est. 2010 cabecera: 450,329
www.soacha-cundinamarca.gov.co
Juan Carlos Nemocon Mojica (Mr) Elected Oct. 2011 Born 1970, twice councilman pre-2007; Party: Liberal-U-ASI coalition
Soledad (Atlántico)
Population est. 2010 cabecera: 534,735
soledad-atlantico.gov.co
Franco Asís Castellanos Niebles (Mr) Elected Oct. 2011 Party: Liberal
Valledupar (Cesar)
Population: est. 2010 cabecera: 342,044
www.valledupar-cesar.gov.co
Fredys Miguel Socarras Reales (Mr) Elected Oct. 2011 Born 1963, physician/surgeon, worked in Cesar health department.; Party: local party - Reales Si Podemos
Villavicencio (Meta)
Population: (est. 2010 cabecera: 407,977)
alcaldiavillavicencio.gov.co
Juan Guillermo Zuluaga Cardona (Mr) Elected Oct. 2011 Party: Partido de la U

* Department in brackets.
** The cabecera is inside the municipio, and includes the municipal capital/seat; the difference between the population of the municipality and cabecera may be small. Population estimates taken from the Departamento Administrativo de Estadística (DANE) 2005 general census.
*** Colombian political parties: 1 - Cambio Radical, centrist party, has backed conservative presidents Álvaro Uribe Vélez and Juan Manuel Santos since 2002.  2 - Partido Social de Unidad Nacional/"Partido de la U", centre-right party founded 2005, includes former liberals, supporters of former president Uribe. 3 - PDA (Polo Democrático Alternativo), left-leaning party. 4 - Partido Liberal - Liberal Party of Colombia (social-democratic) founded 1848; 5 - Partido Conservador - Conservative Party, founded 1849, supports government of Juan Manuel Santos. 6 - Partido Verde - Green Party. 7 - Alianza Social Independiente (ASI), centre-left, indigenous interests.



*Alidad Vassigh also maintains the blog The American News Monitor






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