Centralia is a 4th class city in Mid-Missouri, the second largest in Boone County, with a population of 4,027 at the 2010 census and an estimated population of 4,227 based on 2017 projections. Centralia is enriched in history and boasts an unmatched sense of community pride.
Centralia was one of the first 4th class cities in Missouri to adopt a Mayor and Board of Aldermen type of government. The Board of Aldermen meets for the regularly scheduled meetings on the third Monday of each month at 6:30 p.m. at Centralia City Hall. A quorum of four (4) aldermen are required to conduct official business for the City of Centralia, and the Mayor only votes on issues in the case of a tie of the Board of Aldermen.
The Mayor presides over all meetings of the Board of Aldermen, appoints members of committees, issues proclamations, signs contracts on behalf of the City as authorized by the Board of Aldermen. At the first meeting each year of the Board of Aldermen, typically the third Monday in April, the Board of Aldermen elect an Acting President of the Board (also known as the Mayor Pro Tempore) to serve a one-year term in this position. The Mayor Pro Tempore sits in as acting Mayor when the Mayor is unavailable.
There are three wards in Centralia, and two Aldermen are elected from each ward to serve two-year terms – three are elected in even numbered election years and the other three are elected in odd numbered election years. The Mayor is elected to a two-year term in odd numbered election years.
Candidates for Mayor, or Chief Executive Officer of the City, must meet the following qualifications to be elected:
at least twenty-five (25) years of age
a citizen of the United States
a qualified voter under the laws and Constitution of this State and this Code
a resident of the City at the time of and at least for one (1) year next preceding his or her election.
Candidates for aldermen must meet the following qualifications to be elected to the Board of Aldermen:
at least eighteen (18) years of age
a citizen of the United States
a qualified voter under the laws and Constitution of this State and this Code
an inhabitant and resident of the City for at least one (1) year next preceding his or her election
a resident, at the time he or she files and during the time he or she serves, of the ward from which he or she is elected.
