This is a list of presidents of the Los Angeles City Council. Not only does the officer preside over meetings of the council, but he or she also makes assignments to City Council committees and handles parliamentary duties like ruling motions in or out of order. The president automatically become acting mayor when the mayor is out of the state.[citation needed]
The president is elected at the first meeting of the new council term, beginning on July 1 of every odd-numbered year. Normally this meeting is called to order by the City Clerk for the election of the president, after which a president pro tempore is chosen.[citation needed]
Next to the mayor, the president and president pro tem of the council are generally considered the most powerful officials in municipal government. The president serves as mayor in the absence of the chief executive [the mayor], and the pro tem fills the top position in the absence of both.[1]
