Norwegian Mayors – Ruling the Local World Without Formal Powers

Norwegian mayors have little or no formal powers, but are still seen as the single most influential local politician. In a series of trials from 2003 to 2011 the government invited municipalities to give the mayor extended formal powers. 23 municipalities participated in trials that could be described as incremental at best, where they chose to give the mayors a minimum of extended powers. Interestingly the mayors elected in turn chose to use these powers as little as possible. This paper describes the fate of these trials in a Norwegian context, and based on empirical data from fieldworks, interviews and surveys asks why the mayors are unwilling to use the powers handed to them and how they are able to maintain their influence without such powers.