In Wales, the office of Mayor or Lord Mayor had long been ceremonial posts, with little or no duties attached to it. Traditionally mayors have been elected by town, borough and city councils. Since 2000, councils can decide to have directly elected mayors with extensive powers if such a proposal is approved in a local referendum.
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Lord Mayors
The right to appoint a Lord Mayor is a rare honour, even less frequently bestowed than city status.
Currently, two cities in Wales have Lord Mayors: Cardiff and Swansea.
Mayors
See also borough status in England and Wales for a list of Welsh areas having a borough charter (and therefore a mayor). County boroughs are highlighted here in bold text. Many towns have lost their borough status (for example as a consequence of the Local Government Act 1972) but continued the tradition of appointing or electing mayors to the ongoing Town Councils.
Mayoresses and Lady Mayoresses
The wife of a male Mayor is called the Mayoress and accompanies him to civic functions. A male or female Mayor may appoint a female consort, usually a fellow councillor, as Mayoress. In May 2000 the mayor of Cwmamman, Howard Power, appointed his 15-year-old niece Marianne Coleman as mayoress, because his wife was too busy to fill the role.
The consort of a Lord Mayor is the Lady Mayoress.