page_title: List of mayors of Leeds
section_title: List of Lord Mayors
hierarchical_section_title: List of mayors of Leeds / List of Lord Mayors
caption_attribution_description: English: Sir Edwin Airey
context_page_description: The Lord Mayor of Leeds is a ceremonial post held by a member of Leeds City Council, elected annually by the council.
  By charter from King Charles I in 1626, the leader of the governing body of the borough of Leeds was an alderman, the first holder being Sir John Savile. A second charter, in 1661 from King Charles II, granted the title Mayor to Thomas Danby, after whom Thomas Danby College was named. In 1893 the County Borough of Leeds was granted city status, and in 1897 Queen Victoria conferred the title of Lord Mayor on James Kitson.
  The first woman to have the post was Jessie Beatrice Kitson in 1942: she was elected following the death of Arthur Clarke shortly after his election.
  In 2019, the council elected Leeds first ever black Lord Mayor, Eileen Taylor. After serving as a Labour member of council since 2008, she was elected unanimously by fellow councillors at the authority's annual general meeting. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Taylor's term has been extended for another municipal year until May 2021.
context_section_description: Source:
caption: Sir Edwin Airey, Lord Mayor of Leeds, 1923–1924
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