Early voting is underway in Columbus County for the Nov. 4 municipal elections, when voters will determine who will serve in the leadership roles of their towns and cities for the next term.
Campaign promises aside, individual elected officials have comparatively little impact on day to day operations in local governments, according to the League of Municipalities and N.C. School of Governments.
The terms alderman and council mean the same thing, defining individuals elected by precinct or at large (by the whole community) to serve on a board. Each member of the board votes on issues that affect the entire community.
How much power those board members have depends on the form of government used by the town or city.
Under the council-manager form of government, the elected board hires or appoints a manager to handle daily operations of local government. The board itself makes policy decisions, but the manager is responsible for implementing what the board decides.
Under the council-manager form of government, the mayor in some circumstances wields less power than the board members, since he or she mainly leads meetings and votes only to break a tie. The mayor is responsible for presiding over meetings and representing the board, but cannot make policy or day to day decisions on his own. The mayor has only the powers determined by the elected board and codified by law.
Some towns have a mayor-council form of government, where the mayor and council make joint decisions about operations. Some municipalities hire a part- or full-time administrator to work closely with the mayor on operation in the town.
Locally, Brunswick is the only municipality that allows the elected board to choose a mayor. Brunswick recently made changes to its mayoral duties to fill more of a role as a town administrator. Under that form of government, the mayor votes as any other board member.
A breakdown of the statutory requirements for elected officials and city managers can be found here https://www.sog.unc.edu/sites/default/files/doc_warehouse/Municipal%20Roles%20and%20responsibilities%20CM%20NCGS_0.pdf
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