In 1892, Matthew McCauley was elected as the first Mayor of Edmonton. The 1892 Edmonton Town Council was made up of 6 Aldermen and a Mayor. City Councillors were referred to as Aldermen in Edmonton until 1995.
Edmonton was incorporated as a City in 1904. Elections were held annually in Edmonton from 1892 until 1964, when biennial elections were introduced. Aldermen and a Mayor were elected to serve three-year terms from 1968 to 2013. Since then, the term in Edmonton has been 4 years.
Women were granted the right to vote in Alberta in 1916. In 1921, Izena Ross was elected as Edmonton's first female Alderman. Based on the records available, Edmonton has had 31 female members of Council since then.