List of longest-serving mayors in the United States

Some of the longest-serving mayors in the United States are listed according to their length of service in that currently or has served in that part of the state or legislative office. The office of mayor is the highest ranking local official and responsibilities may vary from ceremonial (see weak mayor) to full-time responsibility for city operations (see strong mayor).

Current serving mayors

A list of mayors still in office and ordered by their length of continuous service in that office. (If there is a break in their service, then this length is measured from their return to the office.)

The longest-serving current mayor of one of the 50 largest cities in the United States is Jean Stothert, who has been mayor of Omaha since June 10, 2013.

Years Name Municipality Notes
49 years, 280 days Margaret M. Doud Mackinac Island, Michigan Entered office on April 14, 1975.[1]
49 years, 14 days Robert Heidenescher Dupont, Ohio Entered office on January 5, 1976.[2]
48 years, 263 days William D. Tate Grapevine, Texas Entered office on May 1, 1973. Served May 1, 1973 – May 1, 1985 and May 1, 1988–present[3]
48–49 years Lamar Scroggs Oakwood, Georgia Entered office in 1976.[4]
48–49 years Harold Rainwater Wilmore, Kentucky Entered office in 1976.[5]
49 years, 18 days Rutledge B. Leland, III McClellanville, South Carolina Entered office in 1976.[6]
47 years, 73 days Robert Chatfield Prospect, Connecticut Entered office on November 7, 1977.
47–48 years Phil Williams McLemoresville, Tennessee Entered office in 1977.[7] He is the longest serving mayor in Tennessee history.
45–46 years Marvin Johnson Independence, Minnesota Entered office in 1979.
43–44 years Mary Hawkins Butler Madison, Mississippi Entered office in 1981.
43 years, 260 days Jeffery D. Schielke Batavia, Illinois Entered office on May 4, 1981.[8]
43 years, 263 days Gerald R. Bennett Palos Hills, Illinois Entered Office in 1981 [9]
43 years, 197 days Mark Anthony McClure Danville, West Virginia Entered office on July 6, 1981.
42 years, 79 days James V. Bender Jr Pollocksville, North Carolina Entered office on November 1, 1982.
42 years, 18 days William "Bill" McIntosh Moultrie, Georgia Entered office in 1983.
39 years, 258 days Duane Dawson Milan, Illinois Entered office on May 6, 1985.[10]
39–40 years Louie Davis Waldo, Florida Entered office in 1985.
38 years Dennis M. Clough Westlake, Ohio Entered office in 1986.[11]
37 years, 169 days Carlos López Rivera Dorado, Puerto Rico Entered office on August 3, 1987.
34 years, 74 days Dr. Ravi Bhasker Socorro, New Mexico Entered office on November 6, 1990.
34 years, 202 days Richard Turner Weehawken, New Jersey Entered office July 1, 1990[12]
34 years, 18 days James M. Cahill New Brunswick, New Jersey Entered office on January 1, 1991.[13]
32 years, 18 days J. Christian Bollwage Elizabeth, New Jersey Entered office on January 1, 1993.[14]
31 years, 16 days Dean J. Mazzarella Leominster, Massachusetts Entered office on January 3, 1994.

Former mayors

A list of mayors in order of their total length of service. (If there is a break in their service, then this length is measured as the sum of their terms.)

Years Name Municipality Notes
63 years, 73 days Hilmar Moore Richmond, Texas Served from September 22, 1949, until his death on December 4, 2012.[15]
61 years, 111 days John H. Land Apopka, Florida Served from January 1, 1950, to January 1, 1968, and from January 1, 1971, to April 22, 2014.
60 years Charles E. Long Booneville, Kentucky Served from 1958 until his death on August 3, 2019.[16]
58 years, 233 days Robert Linn Beaver, Pennsylvania Served from January 2, 1946, to August 22, 2004.
60 years, 364 days Bruce Arnold Valparaiso, Florida Served from January 21, 1964, until his death on February 23, 2017.
56 years Paul Jurko Yankee Lake, Ohio Served from November, 1931 until his death on March 1, 1988.
54 years, 270 days Robert L. Butler Marion, Illinois Served from May 6, 1963[17] until his resignation on January 31, 2018.[18]
52 years Gerald Calabrese Cliffside Park, New Jersey Served from 1961 to 1963 and 1965 to 2015.[19][20]
52 years Frank Caliper Colp, Illinois Served from 1935 until his death on March 28, 1987.
52 years, 0 days John M. Coyne Brooklyn, Ohio Served from 1948 to January 2000.[21][Notes 1]
51 years, 102 days Donald Stephens Rosemont, Illinois First Mayor of Rosemont. Served from village's incorporation in 1956 to 2007.
51 years, 361 days Robert M. Blais Lake George, New York Served from April 5, 1971, to April 1, 2023.[22][23]
51 years, 182 days Dock Hulett Gabbert Derma, Mississippi Served from July 1, 1969, to December 30, 2020.[24]
50 years, 298 days Leonard Scarcella Stafford, Texas Served from September 4, 1969, until his death on June 28, 2020.[25]
50 years, 0 days Leonard T. Connors Surf City, New Jersey Served from 1966 to January 5, 2016.
48 years, 352 days Frank E. Rodgers Harrison, New Jersey Served from September 4, 1946, to August 22, 1995.
48 years, 19 days Randall Wise Niceville, Florida Served from August, 1972 until his death on January 20, 2020.
48 years John Lewis Gay Berea, Kentucky Served from 1910 to 1958.
47 years, 11 months Frank Kelly Collingdale, Pennsylvania Served from 1970 until his death on November 22, 2018.
47 years, 115 days Nicholas B. Blase Niles, Illinois Served from May 2, 1961, until his resignation on August 25, 2008.[26]
47 years, 104 days Milt Kramer Manchester, Iowa Served from September 19, 1974, to January 1, 2022.
43 years, 275 days Noel B. Cummings Hodgkins, Illinois Served from 1979 until his formal retirement was announced on Oct. 3, 2022 at the age of 95.[27]
46 years, 364 days H. Ford Gravitt Cumming, Georgia Served from January 1, 1971, to December 31, 2017.
46 years, 222 days Joseph Sieb Norridge, Illinois Served from November 14, 1951, until his death on June 23, 1998.[28]
44 years Charles "Sonny" Penhale Helena, Alabama Served from 1968 to 2012.[29]
44 years Thomas M. Tartt Livingston, Alabama Served from 1980 to February 22, 2024.
44 years Gerald H. Thompson Fitzgerald, Georgia Served from January 1, 1968, to January 1, 2012.
43–44 years Richard A. Mola Elmwood Park, New Jersey Served from 1972 until his death in 2016.[30]
43 years, 0 days Paul W. Cassidy Parma Heights, Ohio Served from January, 1958 to January, 2001.[31]
42 years, 0 days Tom Reid Pearland, Texas Served from 1978 to 1990 and 1993 to May, 2020.
43–44 years Gary W. Starr Middleburg Heights, Ohio Entered office in 1981.
41 years, 146 days Erastus Corning II Albany, New York Served from January 2, 1942, to May 28, 1983.
41 years, 239 days Harold Wayne Ford Galva, KS Served from June 6, 1977, to January 31, 2019. He was the longest serving mayor of Galva, KS.[32]
41 years Glenn L. Sisco Kinnelon, New Jersey Served from 1969 to 2010.[33]
40 years George C. Clanton Tappahannock, Virginia Served from 1948 to 1988
40 years, 27 days Joseph P. Riley Jr. Charleston, South Carolina Served from December 15, 1975, to January 11, 2016.[34]
39–40 years Louis Bay 2nd Hawthorne, New Jersey Served from 1947 to 1987.
39 years, 363 days William W. Dickinson Jr. Wallingford, Connecticut Served from January 2, 1984, to December 31, 2023.
39 years, 100 days John Ferrero City of Industry, California Served from Industry's incorporation in 1957 till his death on September 26, 1996.[35]
37–38 years James Eagan Florissant, Missouri Served from 1963 to 2000.
36 years Ross Aragon Pagosa Springs, Colorado Served from 1978 to 2014
36 years Randall Ramsey Parma, Missouri Served from 1962 to 1974 and from 1991 to 2015.[36]
35 years, 362 days Orville L. Hubbard Dearborn, Michigan Served from 1942 to 1978.
35 years, 54 days Edward J. Zabrocki Tinley Park, Illinois Served from May 1, 1981, until his resignation in June, 2016.
34–35 years Willis Conner Dexter, Missouri Served for about 35 years.[37]
34–35 years Glendel Stephenson Mebane, North Carolina Served from 1975 to 1983 and 1993 to 2019.[38][39]
33 years, 10 months David W. Smith Newark, California Served from March 1978 to December 2011[40][41]
33 years, 3 months Joseph Barabe Mellen, Wisconsin Served from April 1987 to April 2001 and April 2003 to July 2022
33 years Richard A. Nowack Oak Grove, Illinois Served from May 1978 until his death on September 20, 2011.[42]
33 years Joseph Smith East Newark, New Jersey Served from 1987 to 2020[43]
32 years Anthony Vacco Evergreen Park, Illinois Served from 1969 to 2001.
32 years Shawn Hogan Hornell, New York Served from 1985 to 2017.
32 years Kenneth J. Sims Euclid, Ohio Served from 1938 until his retirement in June 1970[44]
31 years, 6 months James A. Anzaldi Clifton, New Jersey Entered office July 1, 1990 and left office on December 31, 2022[45][46]
30 years, 33 days Frank Hague Jersey City, New Jersey Served from 1917 to 1947.
30 years Richard Homrighausen Dover, Ohio Served from 1992 until his suspension from office in May 2022
30 years Emmett Dofner Jr. McClelland, Iowa Served from 1987 until his death on May 2, 2017.[47]
29 years, 354 days Daniel R. Brooks North College Hill, Ohio Served from January 1, 1984, until his resignation on December 21, 2013[48]
29 years, 201 days Dr. LeRoy G. Suire Erath, Louisiana Served from 1961 to 1990.
29 years, 39 days Willie Oswalt Lake City, Georgia Served from 1989 to 2018.
28 years, 321 days Arnold Klentz West Allis, Wisconsin Served from April 18, 1944, until his death on March 5, 1973.[49][50][Notes 2]
28 years, 150 days Don Plusquellic Akron, Ohio Served from January 1, 1987, until his resignation on May 31, 2015.
28 years, 4 days James Brainard Carmel, Indiana Served from January 1, 1996 to January 4, 2024
28 years Paul Amico Secaucus, New Jersey Served from 1964 to 1992.[51]
28 years Henry Clark Stephenville, Texas Served from 1928 to 1956.[52]
28 years, 0 days Henry Maier Milwaukee, Wisconsin Served from 1960 to 1988.[53]
28 years Walter A. Scott Jackson, Mississippi Served from 1917 to 1945.[54]
28 years Thomas Gerard Dunn Elizabeth, New Jersey 1964 to 1992. Longest-serving mayor of a city of more than 100,000 people.[55]
28 years George H. Lysle McKeesport, Pennsylvania Served from 1914 to 1942.[56]
27 years, 364 days Stephen R. Reed Harrisburg, Pennsylvania Served from 1982 to 2010.
27 years, 0 days Don Robart Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio Served from 1986 to 2013.
26 years, 30 days Miguel A. Pulido Santa Ana, California Served from 1994 to 2020.
26 years Manuel Lamela Abreu Quebradillas, Puerto Rico Served from 1918 to 1944.
24 Years Timothy Hanna Appleton, Wisconsin Served From 1996 to 2020.
23 Years John W. Preece Delbarton, West Virginia Served from 1997 to 2019, was reelected in 2023, but passed away during his term[57]

Notes

  1. ^ The date of inauguration for Mayor John Coyne is not clear. It is clear that his successor, Kenneth Patton, took office in January 2000. References appear to confuse the 1999 election defeat with the day he left office. Most references state that he served 52 years, some from 1947–1999, a few from 1948 to 1999, and others from 1948 to 2000.
  2. ^ Both sources agree that Klentz was inaugurated in 1944; West Allis gives a date of April 18. West Allis inaccurately gives Klentz's death date as March 1971, whereas the contemporary source cited gives it as March 5, 1973.

References

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