The Mayor of Colombo is the elected head of the Colombo Municipal Council. The post was created in 1866 when the Colombo Municipal Council was established by the Legislative Council of Ceylon. The mayor is assisted by the deputy mayor and a Municipal Commissioner.The current mayor is Vraîe Cally Balthazaar, who took office on 16 June 2025.
| Mayor of Colombo | |
|---|---|
Incumbent since 16 June 2025Vraîe Cally Balthazaar | |
| Colombo Municipal Council | |
| Style | His/ Her Worship |
| Residence | Sirinivasa |
| Seat | Town Hall, Colombo |
| Constituting instrument | Municipal Council Ordinance No. 17 of 1865 |
| Formation | 1866 |
| First holder | Charles Peter Layard |
| Deputy | Deputy Mayor of Colombo |
Election
The mayor is elected in a general election held under the Local Authority Election Ordinance from the party gaining the highest number of seats in the municipal council. Once elected the mayor may hold office for four years.
Powers and functions
Most powers are derived from the Municipal Council Ordinance No. 29 of 1947. The Mayor serves as the chief executive of the municipal council.
The municipal council is responsible for:
- Social service
- Health and environmental issues
- Emergency services (not policing, which is the responsibility of the central government)
- Urban planning
- Sanitation (waste, sewage)
Rights and privileges
The mayoral office is located at the Colombo Town Hall and the official mayoral residence is Sirinivasa. The mayor's legal title is His/Her Worship the Mayor of Colombo.
Under the provisions of the Municipal Councils Ordinance the mayor and deputy mayor are ex-official Justice of the Peace and Unofficial Magistrates for the administrative district in which the municipality is situated for the duration of their tenure. This is provided so that the mayor or deputy mayor may preside over the municipal magistrate's court.
Official dress
On formal occasions the Mayor wears a scarlet gown with the Mayoral Chain of Office.
Salary
The Mayor of Colombo's salary is Rs 30,000 per month, which is same of all mayors of municipalities in Sri Lanka.
List of mayors
- Parties
United National Party Lanka Sama Samaja Party National People's Power Independent
| Name | Portrait | Took office | Left office | Refs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Charles Peter Layard | January 1866 | June 1877 | ||
| Frederick Richard Saunders | July 1877 | December 1883 | ||
| William Dumaresq Wright | January 1884 | 6 August 1886 | ||
| G. S. Williams | August 1886 | August 1887 | ||
| George Thomas Michael O'Brien | September 1887 | September 1887 | ||
| Lionel Frederick Lee | October 1887 | November 1887 | ||
| Hardinge Hay Cameron | November 1887 | September 1893 | ||
| Charles Edward Ducat Pennycuick | October 1893 | April 1895 | ||
| Ferdinando Hamblyn Price | May 1895 | March 1901 | ||
| Arthur Sampson Pagden | April 1901 | February 1905 | ||
| E. M. de C. Short | March 1905 | May 1910 | ||
| K. W. B. McLeod | May 1910 | April 1912 | ||
| C. R. Cumberland | May 1912 | November 1912 | ||
| W. E. Thorpe | December 1912 | January 1913 | ||
| E. B. Alexander | February 1913 | October 1913 | ||
| R. W. Byrde | November 1913 | September 1919 | ||
| T. Reid | October 1919 | July 1924 | ||
| Hubert Ernest Newnham | August 1924 | July 1931 | ||
| Walter Terence Stace | July 1931 | March 1932 | ||
| William Lindsay Murphy | March 1932 | March 1935 | ||
| William Lindsay Murphy | November 1935 | May 1937 |
| Name | Portrait | Party | Took office | Left office | Refs | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ratnasothy Saravanamuttu | May 1937 | December 1937 | ||||
| V. R. S. Schokman | January 1938 | December 1939 | ||||
| A. E. Goonesinghe | January 1940 | December 1940 | ||||
| Ratnasothy Saravanamuttu | January 1941 | December 1942 | ||||
| George R. de Silva | January 1943 | December 1943 | ||||
| R. A. de Mel | January 1944 | December 1944 | ||||
| R. S. F. de Mel | January 1945 | December 1945 | ||||
| R. A. de Mel | January 1946 | December 1946 | ||||
| R. S. F. de Mel | January 1947 | December 1949 | ||||
| Kumaran Ratnam | January 1950 | December 1950 | ||||
| S. Sellamuttu | January 1951 | December 1951 | ||||
| C. T. Grero | January 1952 | 11 August 1953 | ||||
| T. Rudra | 21 September 1953 | 13 August 1954 | ||||
| N. M. Perera | Lanka Sama Samaja Party | 13 August 1954 | 28 February 1956 | |||
| V. A. Sugathadasa | United National Party | 6 March 1956 | 1 December 1957 | |||
| M. H. Mohamed | United National Party | 12 January 1960 | 10 January 1963 | |||
| V. A. Sugathadasa | United National Party | 10 January 1963 | 10 April 1965 | |||
| Vincent Perera | United National Party | 10 April 1965 | 1966 | |||
| Jabir A. Cader | United National Party | 1966 | 1969 | |||
| Vincent Perera | United National Party | 1970 | 1973 | |||
| A. H. M. Fowzie | United National Party | 1974 | 1977 | |||
| B. Sirisena Cooray | United National Party | 1979 | 1989 | |||
| M. Hussain Mohamad | United National Party | 1989 | 1991 | |||
| Ratnasiri Rajapakse | United National Party | 1991 | 1994 | |||
| K. Ganeshalingam | United National Party | June 1996 | March 1997 | |||
| Karu Jayasuriya | United National Party | 1997 | 1999 | |||
| Omar Kamil | United National Party | 1999 | 2002 | |||
| Prasanna Gunawardena | United National Party | 3 June 2002 | 2006 | |||
| Uvais Mohamed Imitiyas | Independent UNP-backed | 2 June 2006 | 2010 | |||
| A. J. M. Muzammil | United National Party | 17 October 2011 | 31 March 2016 | |||
| Rosy Senanayake | United National Party | 6 March 2018 | 19 March 2023 | |||
| Vraîe Cally Balthazaar | National People's Power | 16 June 2025 | ||||
Sources
- Hulugalle, H. A. J. (September 1965). Centenary Volume of the Colombo Municipal Council (1865 – 1965) (PDF). Colombo Municipal Council. pp. 53–54. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2024-08-01. Retrieved 2015-08-31.
- "Past Mayors of Colombo". Colombo Municipal Council. Archived from the original on 2014-08-20.
- Wagista, Kumaradasa (1 February 1998). "Century of caring for Colombo". The Sunday Times (Sri Lanka).
- Maniccavasagar, Chelvatamby (24 February 2012). "Colombo Municipal Council's 147th anniversary: Largest Local Authority in SL". Daily News (Sri Lanka). Archived from the original on 28 December 2014. Retrieved 31 August 2015.
- Warnakulasuriya, Deepal (27 May 2007). "Colombo Mayor in a quagmire!". Sunday Observer (Sri Lanka).
- Amaranayake, Vindya; Wamanan, Arthur (26 September 2010). "In defence of the CMC…". The Nation (Sri Lanka).
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