The City Council of
Omaha, Nebraska
Omaha ( ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Nebraska and the county seat of Douglas County. Omaha is in the Midwestern United States on the Missouri River, about north of the mouth of the Platte River. The nation's 39th-largest ...
, is elected every four years on a
nonpartisan
Nonpartisanism is a lack of affiliation with, and a lack of bias towards, a political party.
While an Oxford English Dictionary definition of ''partisan'' includes adherents of a party, cause, person, etc., in most cases, nonpartisan refers sp ...
basis. The next election will occur in 2025. Omaha has a
strong mayor form of government. Members are elected by district. Currently seven city council districts are represented across the City of Omaha.
Membership
City council members represented seven districts throughout the city of Omaha.
The City Council is officially nonpartisan; party affiliations are for informational purposes only. However, registered Democrats hold a majority.
Additional seats
In 2006 the
Nebraska State Legislature
The Nebraska Legislature (also called the Unicameral) is the legislature of the U.S. state of Nebraska. The Legislature meets at the Nebraska State Capitol in Lincoln. With 49 members, known as "senators", the Nebraska Legislature is the sm ...
began deliberations on adding additional seats to the Omaha City Council. Due to the
annexation
Annexation (Latin ''ad'', to, and ''nexus'', joining), in international law, is the forcible acquisition of one state's territory by another state, usually following military occupation of the territory. It is generally held to be an illegal act ...
of
Elkhorn by Omaha, the City Council has proposed new boundaries for the districts that would split Elkhorn between two districts. Legislative Bill 405, introduced by Elkhorn State Senator Dwite Pedersen, would increase the size of the Omaha City Council to 9 members and realign districts. However, this bill was tabled in March 2007 until the next legislative session.
First Omaha City Council
The first Omaha City Council was convened in 1857. It was composed of
A. D. Jones, who resigned March 23, 1857; T. G. Goodwill, who died May 18, 1857; G. C. Bove, H. H. Visscher, Thomas Davis,
, William W. Wyman, Thomas O'Connor, C. H. Downs, J. H. Kellom, for whom
Kellom School was later named; and
John Creighton, whom
Creighton University
Creighton University is a private Jesuit research university in Omaha, Nebraska. Founded by the Society of Jesus in 1878, the university is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission. In 2015 the university enrolled 8,393 graduate and undergra ...
was later named for.
The City Council has long taken stances on issues. In 1859 a local newspaper reported that a, "...bill introduced in the Omaha City Council, for the abolition of slavery in this Territory, was called up yesterday, and its further consideration postponed for two weeks. A strong effort will be made among the Republicans to secure its passage; we think, however, it will fail. The farce certainly cannot be enacted if the Democrats do their duty."
[A ''Daily Nebraskian'' newspaper editorial from 1859, as quoted in Bristow, D. (2002) ''A Dirty, Wicked Town: Tale of 19th Century Omaha.'' Caxton Press.]
References
See also
*
Landmarks Heritage Preservation Commission The City of Omaha Landmarks Heritage Preservation Commission, established in 1977, is the Omaha city government's a nine-member board responsible for recommending official Omaha Landmarks to the Omaha City Council. The Landmarks Heritage Preservat ...
*
Government of Omaha
The government of the City of Omaha, Nebraska consists of the Mayor of Omaha, the Omaha City Council and various departments of the City of Omaha, which is located in Douglas County, Nebraska. The city of Omaha was founded in 1854 and incorpor ...
{{Omaha
City councils in the United States
1857 establishments in Nebraska Territory
Government agencies established in 1857