The List of former members of the Raleigh City Council documents the elected members of the Raleigh City Council, the legislative governing body of the capital city of Raleigh, North Carolina, since the adoption of the Council–manager government system in 1947.
The city council is composed of a Mayor and eight council members, who are elected in non-partisan elections. The council sets policy and legislative direction while a professional city manager oversees day-to-day administration. Historically, all members served two-year terms, but the council has recently undergone significant election reforms, including moving elections to even-numbered years (starting in 2022) and transitioning to four-year staggered terms beginning in 2026.
The list below details the composition of the council for each term since 1947, including Mayor, Mayor Pro Tem, and the at-large and district representatives.
Council Terms (1947–present) 1947–1959
1947 – 1949
P. D. Snipes - Mayor Miss Ruth Wilson Fred B. Wheeler Hobson I. Gattis John F. Danielson Fred Fletcher Joe S. Correll
1949 – 1951
P. D. Snipes - Mayor James E. Briggs - Mayor Pro Tem Miss Ruth Wilson Joe S. Correll John F. Danielson Hobson I. Gattis Fred B. Wheeler
1951 – 1953
James E. Briggs - Mayor Fred B. Wheeler - Mayor Pro Tem, Chairman of Law & Finance Committee B. B. Benson John F. Danielson - Chairman of Public Works Committee W. W. Merriman Jr. W. D. Martin Sr. Martin K. Green
1953 – 1955
Fred B. Wheeler - Mayor John F. Danielson - Chairman of Public Works Committee B. B. Benson - Mayor Pro Tem W. D. Debnam William G. Enloe - Chairman of Law & Finance Committee Martin K. Green W. D. Martin Sr.
1955 – 1957
Fred B. Wheeler - Mayor John F. Danielson - Mayor Pro Tem, Chairman of Public Works Committee W. E. Debnam (resigned 7/20/57 – Wade Lewis appointed) Charles W. Bradshaw Martin K. Green Frank M. Jolly William G. Enloe - Chairman of Law & Finance Committee
1957 – 1959
Wililam G. Enloe - Mayor Guy W. Rawls - Mayor Pro Tem John N. Coffey - Chairman of Public Works Committee at death of Fred B. Wheeler Joe S. Correll Jesse Helms - Chairman of Law & Finance Committee James D. Ray Jr. Fred D. Wheeler (died in office 12/11/57 – John E.Treadwell appointed)
1959 – 1961
William G. Enloe - Mayor James W. Reid - Mayor Pro Tem John N. Coffee - Chairman of Public Works Committee Joe S. Correll Jesse Helms - Chairman of Law & Finance Committee Robert S. Sessoms Jr. Paul A. Hoover
1960s
1961 – 1963
Wiliam G. Enloe - Mayor James W. Reid - Mayor Pro Tem John N. Coffee - Chairman of Public Works Committee Paul A. Hoover - Chairman of Law & Finance Committee William L. McLaurin Travis H. Tomlinson John W. Winters
1963 – 1965
James W. Reid - Mayor Wiliam L. McLaurin - Mayor Pro Tem Earl H. Hostetler William H. Worth Travis H. Tomlinson, Chairman of Law & Finance Committee John Winters, Chairman of Public Works and Planning Commission Charles W. Gaddy
1965 – 1967
Travis H. Tomlinson - Mayor William L. McLaurin Mayor Pro Tem Earl H. Hostetler William H. Worth John W. Winters Charles W. Gaddy William M. Law
1967 – 1969
Travis H. Tomlinson - Mayor Earl H. Hostetler - Mayor Pro Tem Clarence E. Lightner William H. Worth William M. Law Seby B. Jones George B. Cherry
1969 – 1971
Seby B. Jones - Mayor George B. Cherry - Mayor Pro Tem Clarence E. Lightner Jesse O. Sanderson Thomas W. Bradshaw A. L. Strickland Robert W. Shoffner
1970s
1971 – 1973
Thomas W. Bradshaw Jr. – Mayor Clarence E. Lightner - Mayor Pro Tem Michael Boyd Jesse O. Sanderson (resigned 2/29/73 – Paul Hoover appointed) William G. Enloe (died 11/22/72 – Edith Reid appointed) A. L. Strickland Robert W. Shoffner
1973 – 1975
Clarence E. Lightner - Mayor Jack B. Keeter - Mayor Pro Tem Ronald I. Kirshbaum Thomas G. Bashford Miriam P. Block William R. Knight James T. Quinn J. Oliver Wililams
1975 – 1977
Jyles J. Coggins - Mayor Jack B. Keeter - Mayor Pro Tem Ronald I. Kirschbaum Thomas G. Bashford Miriam P. Block Randolph T. Hester Jr. William R. Knight James T. Quinn
1977 – 1979
Isabella W. Cannon - Mayor Jack B. Keeter - Mayor Pro Tem (died 12/2/78 – James B. Womble appointed) Miriam P. Block William R. Knight Edward A. Walters William H. Wilson George Smedes York S. Tony Jordan
1979 – 1981
G. Smedes York - Mayor Edward A. Walters - Mayor James B. Womble Miriam P. Block John A. Edwards Jr. Arthur J. Calloway S. Tony Jordan Avery C. Upchurch
1980s
1981 - 1983
G. Smedes York - Mayor Edwards A. Walters - Mayor Pro Tem Sandra P. Babb Walter M. Keller John A. Edwards Jr. Arthur J. Calloway S. Tony Jordan Avery C. Upchurch
1983 – 1985
Avery C. Upchurch - Mayor Edward A. Walters - Mayor Pro Tem Sandra P. Babb Walter M. Keller Miriam P. Block Arthur J. Calloway Mary C. Cates O. Morton Congleton
1985 – 1987
Avery C. Upchurch - Mayor Edward A. Walters - Mayor Pro Tem Mary C. Cates O. Morton Congleton Perry Safran Charles C. Meeker Ralph Campbell Jr. Norma DeCamp Burns
1987 – 1989
Avery C. Upchurch - Mayor Mary C. Cates - Mayor Pro Tem Charles C. Meeker Ralph Campbell Jr. Norma DeCamp Burns Geoffrey Elting Anne S. Franklin Mary Watson Nooe
1989 – 1991
Avery C. Upchurch - Mayor Ralph Campbell Jr. - Mayor Pro Tem Mary C. Cates Anne S. Franklin Mary Watson Nooe Frank L. Turner E. Julian Ford J. Barlow Herget
1990s
1991 – 1993
Avery C. Upchurch - Mayor Anne S. Franklin - Mayor Pro Tem Mary C. Cates Mary Watson Nooe Ralph Campbell Jr. (elected State Auditor – Charles Francis appointed) Charles C. Meeker Geoffrey Elting J. Barlow Hergett
1993 – 1995
Tom Fetzer - Mayor Mary Watson Nooe - Mayor Pro Tem Charles C. Meeker Geoff Elting John H. Odom Brad Thompson Eric Reeves Paul Y. Coble
1995 - 1997
Tom Fetzer - Mayor Julie Shea-Graw Marc Scruggs Kieran Joseph Shanahan John H. Odom Brad Thompson Eric Reeves (elected to State House of Representatives 12-96 – Stacy Miller app’t 1-97) Paul Coble
1997 – 1999
Tom Fetzer - Mayor Julie Shea-Graw Stephanie Fanjul Kieran Joseph Shanahan John H. Odom Brad Thompson W. Benson Kirkman Paul Coble
1999 – 2001
Paul Coble - Mayor John H. Odom - Mayor Pro Tem Julie Shea-Graw O. Morton Congleton Kieran Joseph Shanahan James West W. Benson Kirkman Marc Scruggs
2000s
2001 – 2003
Charles C. Meeker - Mayor W. Benson Kirkman - Deputy Mayor John H. Odom - Deputy Mayor Janet R. Cowell Neal Hunt Philip R. Isley Kieran Joseph Shanahan James P. West
2003 – 2005
Charles C. Meeker - Mayor James P. West, Mayor Pro Tem – District C Janet Cowell - replaced by Joyce Kekas 2/1/05 -Cowell elected to NC Senate - At Large Neal Hunt - replaced by Tommy Craven 2/1/05 – Hunt elected to NC Senate- At Large Mike Regan – District A Jessie Taliaferro – District B Thomas Crowder – District D Philip R. Isley – District E
2005 – 2007
Charles C. Meeker - Mayor Russ Stephenson – At Large Joyce Kekas – At Large Thomas Craven – District A Jessie Taliaferro – District B James P. West – District C – Mayor Pro Tem Thomas G. Crowder – District D Philip R. Isley – District E
2007 – 2009
Charles C. Meeker - Mayor James P. West - Mayor Pro Tem, District C Mary Ann Baldwin – At Large Russ Stephenson – At Large Nancy McFarlane – District A Rodger Koopman - District B Thomas G. Crowder – District D Philip R. Isley – District E
2009 – 2011
Charles C. Meeker – Mayor James P. West- Mayor Pro Tem, District C (Resigned to become Wake County Commissioner 9/21/10) Mary-Ann Baldwin – At Large (Mayor Pro Tem 10/19/10 – 4/30/11) Russ Stephenson – At Large Nancy McFarlane – District A (Mayor Pro Tem 5/1/11 – 12/5/11) John Odom – District B Eugene Weeks – District C (October 19, 2010) Thomas G. Crowder – District D Bonner Gaylord – District E
2010s
2011 – 2013
Nancy McFarlane – Mayor Russ Stephenson – At Large; Mayor Pro Tem 12/6/11 – 12/03/12 Eugene Weeks – District C; Mayor Pro Tem 12/04/12 – 12/03/13 Mary-Ann Baldwin – At Large Randall Stagner – District A John Odom – District B Thomas Crowder – District D Bonner Gaylord – District E
2013 – 2015
Nancy McFarlane – Mayor Mary-Ann Baldwin – At-Large Russ Stephenson – At-Large Wayne Maiorano – District A John Odom – District B Eugene Weeks – District C Thomas Crowder – District D Bonner Gaylord – District E
2015-2017
Nancy McFarlane – Mayor Mary-Ann Baldwin – At-Large Russ Stephenson – At-Large Dickie Thompson – District A David Cox – District B Corey Branch – District C Kay Crowder – District D Bonner Gaylord – District E
2017-2019
Nancy McFarlane - Mayor Nicole Stewart - at-large Russ Stephenson - at-large Dickie Thompson - District A David Cox - District B Corey Branch - District C Kay Crowder - District D Stef Mendell - District E
2020s
2019-2021
Mary Ann Baldwin - Mayor Nicole Stewart - Mayor Pro Tem, at-large Johnathan Melton - at-large Patrick Buffkin - District A David Cox - District B Corey Branch - Mayor Pro Tem, District C Saige Martin - District D David Knight - District E
2022-2024
Mary-Ann Baldwin - Mayor Jonathan Melton - at-large Stormie Forte - at-large Mary Black-Branch - District A Megan Patton - District B Corey Branch - District C Jane Harrison - District D Christina Jones - District E
See also
Raleigh City Council List of mayors of Raleigh, North Carolina Raleigh, North Carolina Wake County, North Carolina
References