# List of mayors of Cairns

The City of Cairns, in Far North Queensland, was originally established as a borough with a chairman from 1885 until 1903, when the Local Authorities Act 1902 transformed it into a town with a mayor. The town achieved city status in 1923. In 1995, when the Shire of Mulgrave amalgamated into the City, the mayor was elected by a much larger base of voters. In 2008, when the City was amalgamated with the Shire of Douglas into the Cairns Region, the mayor's voter base expanded yet again.

## Borough of Cairns (1885–1903)

The mayors of the Borough of Cairns were:
| Chairman | Term |
| Richard Ash Kingsford | 1885–1886 |
| Louis Severin | 1886–1888 |
| Richard Ash Kingsford | 1889 |
| Callaghan Walsh | 1890 |
| Louis Severin | 1891 |
| Alexander Frederick John "AJ" Draper | 1891–1893 |
| Daniel Patience | 1893–1894 |
| James Lyons | 1895–1896 |
| AJ Draper | 1897 |
| Karl Aumuller | 1898 |
| Lyne Brown | 1899 |
| Richard Alfred Tills | 1900–1901 |
| AJ Draper | 1902 |

## Town of Cairns (1903–1923)

The mayors of the Town of Cairns were:
| Mayor | Term |
| Louis Severin | 1903 |
| Donald McLachlan | 1904 |
| Charles McKenzie | 1905 |
| Edward Earl | 1906 |
| Richard Alfred Tills | 1907 |
| Sinclair Miller | 1908 |
| John Coxall | 1909 |
| Andrew Hartill-Law | 1910 |
| John George Hoare | 1911 |
| Charles McKenzie | 1912–1913 |
| Thomas Dillon | 1914 |
| John Griffiths | 1915 |
| Thomas Dillon | 1915–1916 |
| Thomas Henry Donaldson | 1917 |
| AJ Draper | 1918–1919 |
| Richard Cowle Foxdale Gelling | 1919 |
| John George Hoare | 1920–1923 |

## City of Cairns Council (1923–1995)

The mayors of the City of Cairns (prior to amalgamation) were:
| Mayor | Term |
| John George Hoare | 1923–1924 |
| AJ Draper | 1924–1927 |
| William Aloysius Collins | 1927–1949 |
| William Henry Murchison | 1949–1952 |
| Bill Fulton | 1952–1960 |
| S. Darcy Chataway | 1960–1967 |
| Colin Penridge | 1967–1969 |
| David Thomas De Jarlais | 1969–1973 |
| Kevin Francis Crathern | 1973–1978 |
| Ronald (Ron) Davis | 1979–1988 |
| Keith Goodwin | 1988–1990 |
| John Peter Cleland | 1990–1991 |
| Kevin Byrne | 1992–1995 |

## City of Cairns Council (Amalgamated) (1995–2008)

The mayors of the City of Cairns (following amalgamation):
| Mayor | Term |
| Tom Pyne | 1995–2000 |
| Kevin Byrne | 2000–2008 |

## Cairns Regional Council
### 2008–present

| No. | Mayor | Party | Term start | Term end | Notes | Council control (term) |
| 1 | Val Schier | Independent | 3 April 2008 | 28 April 2012 | First female mayor of Cairns. Lost re-election | Independents majority (2008–2012) |
| 2 | Bob Manning | Unity | 28 April 2012 | 17 November 2023 | Retired | Unity majority (2012–2024) |
| 3 | Terry James | Unity | 22 November 2023 | 16 March 2024 | Division 4 councillor 2012–2023. Lost re-election | Unity majority (2012–2024) |
| 4 | Amy Eden | Team Eden | 16 March 2024 | present | Division 5 councillor 2020–2024. Incumbent | No overall control (2024–present) |

## Election results
### 2024

2024 Queensland mayoral elections: Cairns :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Team Eden | Amy Eden | 25,782 | 30.70 | +30.70 |
| | Cairns Unity | Terry James | 20,187 | 24.04 | −42.93 |
| | Independent | Paul Taylor | 19,532 | 23.26 | +23.26 |
| | Community First | Denis Walls | 10,745 | 12.79 | +12.79 |
| | Independent | John Kel | 3,854 | 4.59 | +4.59 |
| | Independent | Leah Potter | 2,747 | 3.27 | +3.27 |
| | Independent | Warren Binda | 1,139 | 1.36 | +1.36 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 88,650 | 75.39 | +4.83 |
| Two-candidate-preferred result ||||||
| | Team Eden | Amy Eden | 30,364 | 56.64 | +56.64 |
| | Cairns Unity | Terry James | 23,242 | 43.36 | −37.89 |
| | Team Eden gain from Cairns Unity | Team Eden gain from Cairns Unity | Swing | N/A | |

### 2020

2020 Queensland mayoral elections: Cairns :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Cairns Unity | Bob Manning | 47,171 | 66.97 |
| | Independent | Georgia Babatsikos | 8,161 | 11.59 |
| | Independent LNP | Ian Lydiard | 7,837 | 11.13 |
| | Cairns N.Q.S.A. Team | Jen Sackley | 7,266 | 10.32 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 73,850 | 70.56 |
| Two-candidate-preferred result ||||||
| | Cairns Unity | Bob Manning | 49,048 | 81.25 |
| | Independent | Georgia Babatsikos | 11,320 | 18.75 |
| | Cairns Unity hold | Cairns Unity hold | Swing | |

### 1933

1933 Queensland mayoral elections: Cairns :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Independent | William Aloysius Collins | unopposed | | |
| | Independent hold | Independent hold | Swing | | |