Lord Mayor of Leicester

The position of Lord Mayor of Leicester is a mainly ceremonial post, being the title of the chairman of the Leicester City Council, elected annually by the members of the council.

The role of Lord Mayor is in many ways similar to that carried out by the Speaker in the House of Commons.

From the Middle Ages until 1928 the title was simply Mayor of Leicester. Until the 19th century, the mayors were usually elected annually by the Corporation of Leicester. Since the development of forms of local democracy, the mayors and Lord Mayors of the city have been elected indirectly from among elected councillors and aldermen, but since 1971 no unelected aldermen have been entitled to vote.

The first mayor of Leicester was the Norman knight "Peter fitz Roger" (Peter son of Roger) in 1251. The title was elevated to "Lord Mayor" by letters patent dated 10 July 1928. This was confirmed for the reorganised non-metropolitan district by letters patent dated 1 April 1974.

The first Asian Lord Mayor of Leicester, Gordhan Parmar, was elected in 1987. After institution of a directly elected mayor in 2011 the Lord Mayor of Leicester still exists as a ceremonial role under Leicester City Council.

Sources: Roll of Mayors; S. Stone (1871). A List of the Mayors, Magistrates, Aldermen, and Councillors, of the Borough of Leicester, since the passing of the Municipal Corporations Reform Act. Leicester.*1499 William Wyggeston, MP for Leicester, 1504

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