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Memphis, Tennessee is governed by a mayor and thirteen city council members. Since 1995, as a result of a legal challenge, all council members are elected from nine geographic districts. Seven are single-member districts and two have three representatives each. ==City government== After being classified as a taxing district in 1880 after a grievous loss of population due to the yellow fever epidemic, Memphis regained home rule in 1893. It established a city commission form of government, which it maintained until 1965. At that time, it established a mayor-council government of thirteen council positions. Six were elected at-large and seven were elected from single-member districts. Following implementation of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, African Americans began to register and vote in greater number. As conservative whites shifted to the Republican Party and African Americans supported the Democratic Party, partisan politics in the city became competitive again. By the mid-1970s, most white conservatives, formerly identifying as Democrats, had shifted to the Republican Party. In the same period, given support by the national Democratic Party to the civil rights movement, most African Americans became Democrats. Civil rights activists challenged the at-large voting structure for the city council, as it diluted the voting power of the minority and prevented their electing candidates of their choice. The at-large seats tended to be won by wealthier candidates who could mount citywide campaigns and command majority votes; in 1970, there was a substantial white majority. In 1995 the city adopted a different electoral system, maintaining 13 seats on the council. Seven positions are elected from single-member districts, and two districts elect three representatives each. Since these changes, more Democrats and women have been elected to the city council than under the at-large system. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Government of Memphis, Tennessee」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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