The Mayor of Southwark

Southwark mayor

The Mayor of Southwark and The Civic Office are the council's chief custodians of civic pride and its champions of community cohesion.

This is very much in keeping with Southwark's position as 'London's most historic borough' and our proven reputation for promoting good relations between residents of every background. We also support others in the council and the community to do likewise - to celebrate all that is good about life in Southwark.

Like most London boroughs, the mayoralty in Southwark is representational by nature. This means that the Mayor holds no executive powers and the office of the Mayor is fundamentally apolitical, neutral, and independent. This is one of its greatest strengths and means that the Mayor can represent all sections of the community as First Citizen without fear or favour.

At the same time, the office of Mayor carries its own unique set of rights and historic entitlements. For example, the Mayor of a borough has long been recognised as being second only to Royalty and the King's Deputy, the Lord Lieutenant or the Representative Deputy Lieutenant.

This means that the Mayor has unlimited rights to precedence in the borough and is always afforded due dignity and respect as the most important person in attendance at public events, save those where a member of The Royal Family and His Majesty's Deputy is present. For civic events within the borough boundaries where the King's Deputy is present, but not a member of the Royal Family, the Mayor enjoys precedence overall as First Citizen.

Councillor Naima Ali was elected Mayor 2024-2025 and Councillor Sunny Lambe was appointed as Deputy Mayor at the Mayor Making on 22 May 2024. This took place at the Annual Meeting of the Council (incorporating the election and installation of the new mayor of Southwark).

Page last updated: 19 July 2024

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