The mayor of Carmel-by-the-Sea is the official head and chief executive officer of Carmel-by-the-Sea, California. The mayor is elected for a two-year term and limited to serving no more than two terms. Under the California Constitution, all judicial, school, county, and city offices, including those of chartered cities, are nonpartisan.
Dave Potter is the city's current mayor, having assumed office on November 8, 2018.[1] He was reelected on November 3, 2020, again for a 2 year term as mayor, with 73.62% of the vote.[2]
| Mayor | Term start | Term end | class=unsortable | Notes | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alfred P. Fraser | 1916 | 1920 | Alfred Parker Fraser (1873-1930) was the first mayor of Carmel. Built a house in 1913 on the northwest corner of Camino Real and Ocean Avenue.[3] [4] | |||||
| Eva K. DeSabla | 1920 | 1920 | First woman mayor of Carmel.[5] Ran for city trustee in the charter election of 1916. She was appointed mayor in April 1920 but resigned the post five months later. M.J. Murphy built her a cabin at Santa Rita and 4th Ave., in 1917.[6] | |||||
| William T. Kibbler | 1920 | 1922 | William Thomas Kibbler (1856-1937) owned one of the first homes in Carmel, twice elected mayor, and was treasurer of the Forest Theater.[7] | |||||
| William L. Maxwell | 1922 | 1922 | William L. Maxwell, wife of Laura W. Maxwell, was mayor for only 19 days in 1922.[8] | |||||
| Perry Newberry | 1922 | 1924 | Perry Newberry was a writer, actor, and publisher of the Carmel Pine Cone. He was Carmel's fifth major. | |||||
| William T. Kibbler | 1924 | 1926 | William T. Kibbler was elected mayor for the second time. | |||||
| John B. Jordan | 1926 | 1928 | bgcolor= | Republican | John B. Jordan was an actor and scholar, purchased the Pine Inn hotel in 1922. | |||
| Ross E. Bonham | 1928 | 1930 | Ross E. Bonham was elected mayor in 1928 on the "business ticket." At the end of his term he was elected on the city council.[9] In 1926, Georege Whitcomb constructed a Tudor-style house for Bonham on the SW corner of San Crlos Street and 12 Avenue. | |||||
| Herbert Heron | 1930 | 1932 | Herbert Heron was the first poet mayor. He became the eighth mayor of Carmel. | |||||
| John C. Catlin | 1932 | 1934 | bgcolor= | Republican | John C. Catlin was a blacksmith mayor and lawyer.[10] | |||
| James H. Thorburn | 1934 | 1936 | Philip Wilson Jr.'s sister, Grace Hood Wilson, married James H. Thorburn, who was the Carmel mayor from 1934-1936. | |||||
| Everett Smith | 1936 | 1938 | Everett Smith (1891-1967) was called the Forester-Mayor because he was strong advocate for environmental preservation.[11] | |||||
| Herbert Heron | 1938 | 1940 | Herbert Heron was elected mayor for the second time. He ran on the platform for "Carmel's beautification" and "Keep Carmel Beach free of commercial concessions."[12] [13] | |||||
| Keith Evans | 1940 | 1942 | Keith Evans was the first mayor to hold the office for two consecutive teerms but left to serve in World War II.[14] [15] | |||||
| Percy A. McCreery | 1942 | 1946 | Percy A. McCreery took over mayor Keith Evans's position when he left to join the army. He won a second time in the April 1944 election.[16] | |||||
| Frederick M. Godwin | 1946 | 1950 | Owner of the La Playa Hotel along with his brother Harrison. Fred Godwin had a brief film career in the late 1920s.[17] | |||||
| Allen Knight | 1950 | 1952 | Allen Knight served eight years on the Carmel City Council, and a two-year mayoral term in April 1950. [18] | |||||
| Horace D. Lyon | 1952 | 1958 | Horace D. Lyon was elected for three consecutive teerms.[19] During his tenure as mayor, Lyon resided in the George E. Butler House, a Spanish Eclectic-style home constructed in 1936 by builder Ernest Bixler.[20] | |||||
| John S. Chitwood | 1958 | 1960 | John S. Chitwood was mayor (1958-1960) and a member of the city council for 12 years.[21] | |||||
| Frank Putnam | 1960 | 1962 | Frank Putnam, local merchant, was elected mayor of Carmel by a three-man vote.[22] | |||||
| Eben Whittlesey | 1962 | 1964 | Eben Whittlesey was the first blind mayor of Carmel.[23] | |||||
| Herbert B. Blanks | 1964 | 1966 | Herbert B. Blanks was named Carmel's new mayor on April 14, 1964 with a vote 3-2 for Blanks.[24] | |||||
| Stephen A. Grant | 1966 | 1968 | Stephen A. Grant was elected Mayor of Carmel in April 1966.[25] | |||||
| Benard Laiolo | 1968 | 1972 | Benard Laiolo, owner of Village Electric and resident for over 20 years, became Mayor of Carmel. He served three terms.[26] | |||||
| Bernard Anderson | 1972 | 1976 | Bernard "Andy" Anderson became Carmel's new Mayor in April 1972. He had a career in US Forestry, retired in 1965, and moved to Carmel.[27] | |||||
| Eugene Hammond | 1976 | 1976 | Eugene Hammond was mayor for only seven months, citing health and business reasons. | |||||
| Gunnar Norberg | 1976 | 1980 | bgcolor= | Republican | Gunnar Norberg was sworn in a Carmel's new mayor after Eugene Hammond resigned. He served two terms as city councilman and two terms as Mayor.[28] | |||
| 28 | Barney Laiolo | 1980 | 1982 | Barney Laiolo was sworn into office in April 1980. This was his third-term as Mayor. He was mayor from 1968-1970 and 1970-1972 and the only three-term mayor in Carmel's history.[29] | ||||
| 29 | Charlotte Townsend | 1982 | 1986 | Charlotte Townsend became the second female Carmel mayor in 60 years.[30] | ||||
| 30 | Clint Eastwood | 1986 | 1988 | bgcolor= | Republican | Actor Clint Eastwood was elected mayor on April 15, 1986 in a landslide win.[31] | ||
| 31 | Jean Grace | 1988 | 1992 | On April 12, 1988, Jean Grace, a Monterey Bay Air Pollution Control District field representative, won with 53% of ballots cast, a margin of 276 votes over her only other major opponent, Clayton Anderson, a retired public administrator; Grace had been endorsed by the incumbent mayor, Clint Eastwood.[32] | ||||
| 32 | Ken White | 1992 | 2000 | A councilman since 1988, Ken White defeated former three-term mayor Barney Laiolo. He served as mayor of Carmel from 1992 to 2000.[33] [34] | ||||
| 33 | Sue McCloud | 2000 | 2012 | Sue McCloud served as a six-term mayor, the longest (2000-2012) in Carmel history.[35] [36] [37] | ||||
| 34 | Jason Burnett | 2012 | 2016 | Jason Burnett won by a landslide by receiving 72 percent of vote. He won a second term in 2014.[38] [39] [40] | ||||
| 35 | Steve Dallas | 2016 | 2018 | Steve Dallas was elected mayor in 2016. He was elected to the city council in 2014.[41] | ||||
| 36 | Dave Potter | 2018 | Current | bgcolor= | Democratic | On November 8, 2018, Dave Potter was elected mayor of Carmel-by-the-Sea for a 2 year term. He received nearly 60% of the vote. |