[1] The mayor is a member of city council, which is an elected body that is responsible for developing policies, programs and services of the municipality; representing constituents in municipal government; and providing governance over the corporation of the municipality.

[1] The Mayor leads Council and acts as the Chairperson of council meetings, as the Chief Executive Officer for the corporation, and as the representative for the municipality.

[1] Between 1850 and 1859, when Peterborough first became a township, aldermen were elected every January and these elected officials appointed a mayor, reeve and deputy reeve from among their numbers.

[3] In 1860, this changed and the public was able to vote for mayor at the polls.

Currently, municipal elections are held every four years and voters are able to cast their ballot for a mayoral candidate as well as candidates in their home ward.