The council consists of the mayor plus twenty-four councillors appointed to serve a one-year term by the Sabah State Government.

The history of the town of Jesselton can be traced since the administration of British North Borneo Company (BNBC) in 1881.

[1] Throughout the administration under the Federation of Malaysia since 1963, the town subsequently renamed into Kota Kinabalu and a council was later established after it was granted city status on 2 February 2000.

Their jurisdiction covers an area of 351 square kilometres encompassing the sub-districts, suburbs and/or towns such as Tanjung Aru, Kepayan, Kota Kinabalu city, Luyang (including Damai and Foh Sang neighbourhoods), Inanam, Menggatal, Telipok, Likas and Sepanggar.

The previous mayors are listed as below: The official mascots of Kota Kinabalu are:[10]