Mayor of Hartford, Connecticut
Incumbent
Arunan Arulampalam
since January 1, 2024
TypeMayor
FormationJune 18, 1774
First holderThomas Seymour

The following table lists the individuals who served as mayor of Hartford, Connecticut, their political party affiliations, and their dates in office, as well as other information.[1]

History

The city of Hartford switched from a mayor–council government to a council–manager government in 1947.[2] The mayor was chosen from among the city council until 1969, when the mayor began to be directly elected in partisan elections.[2][3]

In the 1990s and early 2000s, there were three unsuccessful efforts to amend to city charter to switch from a "weak mayor" system to a "strong mayor" system.[2] Advocates for reform argued a switch to a strong-mayor system would "ameliorate the sense of citizen frustration with the Hartford government and the many problems facing the city," such as a significant drop in the city's population (11.1% from 1990 to 1994, the largest drop for a large U.S. city), crime, a broken school system (which had been taken over by the state), an overstaffed and costly fire department, and a scandal-ridden police department, as well as lackluster economic development.[2][3] Under the system then in place, the mayor had no vote in the city council, and had only the power to veto council legislation.[2] The city council was also solely responsible for hiring or firing the city manager, with the mayor having no formal role.[2] The mayor also lacked effective executive power; it was the city manager who appointed and supervised department heads.[2] The mayor could only hire and fire his own secretary.[3] Moreover, the mayor's salary was very low, $30,000, which discouraged qualified candidates from running.[3] Because of this system, the mayor's influence was based solely on his "ability to cobble together a council coalition," and the mayor's functions were mostly those of "a policy advocate rather than a player in policy implementation."[2]

in 2000, proposed charter revisions written by a Charter Revision Commission would have eliminated the city manager, made the mayor the chief executive of the city, increase the mayor's salary from $30,000 to $105,000, increased the size of the city council (from nine to fifteen), and switched to elections of council members by ward rather than at-large.[3] The proposed charter revisions were put to a vote in a city special election; the majority of voters supported the revisions, but the revision fell short of the required 15% of all registered voters, and so the proposal failed.[3]

In January 2002, shortly after taking office, mayor Eddie A. Perez—an advocate for a strong-mayor government—formed a new fifteen-member Charter Review Commission to review the charter and recommend changes.[2] The commission recommended several changes, many of which had been recommended by the previous commission. The revision proposed shifted to a strong-mayor system in which the mayor would serve as chief executive officer and chief operating officer of the city, appoint a majority of the board of education, appoint all department heads, remove department heads (with the approval of six council members), and prepare and present the annual city budget to the council. On November 5, 2002, the revisions went to a city vote, and all were approved, with about 77% of voters approving the changes, effective with the 2003 election.[2][3]

List of mayors

The following table lists the individuals who served as mayor of Hartford, Connecticut.[1]

# Name Party Served Notes
1 Thomas Seymour Federalist June 18, 1774 – May 28, 1812 Resigned
2 Chauncey Goodrich Federalist June 8, 1812 – September 9, 1815 Died in office; Served simultaneously as Lieutenant Governor of Connecticut
3 Jonathan Brace Federalist September 9, 1815 – November 22, 1824
4 Nathaniel Terry Whig November 22, 1824 – March 28, 1831
5 Thomas Scott Williams Whig March 28, 1831 – April 27, 1835
6 Henry Leavitt Ellsworth Democratic April 27, 1835 – June 15, 1835 Resigned
7 Jared Griswold Whig June 15, 1835 – November 22, 1835 Died in office
8 Jeremy Hoadley Whig November 23, 1835 – April 18, 1836
9 Henry Hudson Whig April 18, 1836 – April 20, 1840
10 Thomas Kimberly Brace Whig April 20, 1840 – April 17, 1843 Resigned
11 Amos M. Collins Democratic April 17, 1843 – April 19, 1847
12 Philip Ripley Democratic April 19, 1847 – April 21, 1851
13 Ebenezer Flower Democratic April 21, 1851 – April 18, 1853
14 William Jas. Hamersley Democratic April 18, 1853 – April 17, 1854
15 Henry C. Deming Democratic April 17, 1854 – April 12, 1858
16 Timothy M. Allyn Republican April 12, 1858 – April 8, 1860
17 Henry C. Deming Democratic April 9, 1860 – February 27, 1862 Resigned
18 Charles S. Benton Democratic February 10, 1852 – April 14, 1862 Elected by Common Council
19 William Jas. Hamersley Democratic April 14, 1862 – April 11, 1864
20 Allyn S. Stillman Republican April 11, 1864 – April 9, 1866
21 Charles R. Chapman Democratic April 9, 1866 – April 1, 1872
22 Henry C. Robinson Republican April 1, 1872 – April 6, 1874
23 Joseph H. Sprague Democratic April 6, 1874 – April 1, 1878
24 George G. Sumner Democratic April 1, 1878 – April 5, 1880
25 Morgan Bulkeley Republican April 5, 1880– April 2, 1888
26 John G. Root Republican April 2, 1888 – April 7, 1890
27 Henry C. Dwight Republican April 7, 1890 – April 4, 1892
28 William Waldo Hyde Democratic April 4, 1892 – April 2, 1894
29 Leveret Brainard Republican April 2, 1894 – April 6, 1896
30 Miles B. Preston Democratic April 6, 1896 – April 2, 1900
31 Alexander Harbison Republican April 2, 1900 – April 7, 1902
32 Ignatius A. Sullivan Democratic April 7, 1902 – April 4, 1904
33 William F. Henney Republican April 4, 1904 – April 7, 1908
34 Edward W. Hooker Republican April 7, 1908 – April 5, 1910
35 Edward L. Smith Democratic April 5, 1910 – April 2, 1912
36 Louis R. Cheney Republican April 2, 1912 – April 7, 1914
37 Joseph H. Lawler Democratic April 7, 1914 – April 4, 1916
38 Frank A. Hagarty Republican April 7, 1916 – April 7, 1918
39 Richard J. Kinsella Democratic April 2, 1918 – April 4, 1920
40 Newton C. Brainard Republican April 6, 1920 – May 2, 1922
41 Richard J. Kinsella Democratic April 4, 1922 – April 6, 1924
42 Norman C. Stevens Republican April 1, 1924 – May 1, 1928
43 Walter E. Batterson Republican April 3, 1928 – December 1, 1931
44 William J. Rankin Democratic November 3, 1931 – December 4, 1933
45 Joseph W. Beach Republican November 7, 1933 – December 3, 1935
46 John A. Pilgard Democratic November 5, 1935 – November 14, 1935 Died before taking oath of office
47 Thomas J. Spellacy Democratic December 3, 1935 – June 18, 1943 Elected to first term by Common Council; resigned in fourth term.
48 Dennis P. O'Connor Democratic June 24, 1943 – December 7, 1943 Elected by Common Council
49 William H. Mortensen Republican December 7, 1943 – December 4, 1945
50 Cornelius A. Moylan Republican December 4, 1945 – December 24, 1946 Died in office
51 Edward N. Allen Republican January 3, 1947 – January 6, 1948 Elected by Common Council
52 Cyril Coleman Democratic January 6, 1948 – December 4, 1951
53 Joseph V. Cronin Democratic December 4, 1951 – December 1, 1953
54 Dominick J. DeLucco Democratic 1953–1955
55 Joseph V. Cronin Democratic 1955–1957
56 James H. Kinsella Democratic 1957–1960
57 Dominick J. DeLucco Democratic November 14, 1960 – December 5, 1961 Deputy mayor, succeeded to office
58 William E. Glynn Democratic December 5, 1961 – December 7, 1965
59 George B. Kinsella Democratic December 7, 1965 – December 5, 1967
60 Antonina Uccello Republican December 5, 1967 – April 12, 1971 Resigned to take U.S. Department of Transportation post;
City's first female mayor; first female mayor of a state capital[4]
61 George A. Athanson Democratic April 12, 1971 – December 1, 1981 Deputy mayor, succeeded to office
62 Thirman L. Milner Democratic December 1, 1981 – December 1, 1987 City's first black mayor, and first black elected mayor in New England[5]
63 Carrie Saxon Perry Democratic December 1, 1987 – December 7, 1993 City's first black female mayor, and first black female elected mayor of a major Northeastern city[6]
64 Michael P. Peters Democratic December 7, 1993 – December 4, 2001
65 Eddie A. Perez Democratic December 4, 2001 – June 26, 2010 Resigned after being convicted on federal corruption charges[7]
City's first Hispanic mayor[8]
66 Pedro Segarra Democratic June 26, 2010 – December 31, 2015 City Council president, succeeded Perez; city's first openly gay mayor[9]
67 Luke Bronin Democratic January 1, 2016–December 31, 2023
68 Arunan Arulampalam Democratic January 1, 2024–present

See also

References

  1. ^ a b Kevin Flood, Mayors of Hartford, HartfordHistory.net (retrieved April 26, 2015).
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j H. George Frederickson, Gary Alan Johnson & Curtis H. Wood, The Adapted City: Institutional Dynamics and Structural Change (M.E. Sharpe: 2004), pp. 145–47.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g Wendy L. Hassett, "Hartford: Politics Trumps Professionalism" in More Than Mayor or Manager: Campaigns to Change Form of Government in America's Large Cities (James H. Svara & Douglas J. Watson eds., Georgetown University Press: 2010), pp. 70–75.
  4. ^ Editorial, Trail-Blazing Former Hartford Mayor Ann Uccello Turns 90, Hartford Courant (May 18, 2012).
  5. ^ Thirman Milner (born October 29, 1933), Hartford Courant.
  6. ^ The 1993 Elections: Connecticut; Mayor Perry Is Denied a Fourth Term by Voters in Hartford, New York Times (November 4, 2001).
  7. ^ Michael Winter, Hartford Mayor Eddie Perez resigns after corruption conviction, USA Today (June 18, 2010).
  8. ^ Jenna Carlesso, Former Hartford Mayor Eddie A. Perez Sentenced To Three Years in Prison, Hartford Courant (September 15, 2010).
  9. ^ Jenna Carlesso, Hartford Mayor Segarra Honored By Out Magazine, Hartford Courant (November 17, 2010).
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