The Lord Mayor chairs Council meetings and performs ceremonial functions in the city.

[7][8] The referendum result was to abolish the position, and replace it with a committee system at the end of the current mayoral term in May 2024.

[17] Nine other cities also held referendums on the same day: Birmingham,[18] Bradford,[19] Coventry,[20] Leeds,[21] Manchester,[22] Newcastle upon Tyne,[23] Nottingham,[24] Sheffield[25] and Wakefield.

[31] During the campaign, there were complaints that many voters did not receive leaflets produced by the city council explaining what the referendum was about.

[32][33] Cities minister, Greg Clark accused the council of inaccuracies in the leaflet and refused to cover the printing costs.

[34] After Clark promised more powers would be available to Bristol with an elected mayor, the city council accused him of "blackmail".

[41] The supplementary vote system is used for the elections, with each voter being entitled to list a first and second choice candidate.