Overview

Examining how local leadership has evolved by comparing the mayoralties of New York, London, and Amsterdam, this book uniquely focuses on Michael Bloomberg (2002–2014), Ken Livingstone (2000–2008), Boris Johnson (2008–2016), and Job Cohen (2001–2010) to reveal the cultural and operational contrasts that shaped their approaches to governance. Drawing on the Leadership Capital Index (LCI) - a recent innovation in political leadership studies, Stafford offers a fresh perspective on the strong-mayor model, not only evaluating the strengths and limitations of the LCI but also advancing the debate on what makes effective urban leadership. Original and insightful, this book redefines how we understand mayors as pivotal political actors.

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9781350498051

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Reviews

This book is a must-read for anyone interested in understanding city mayors and political leadership. Through using the relatively new analytical tool of the Leadership Capital Index to critically compare four detailed case-studies, the author tackles with originality the age-old question of how mayors can effectively use their agency in the face of institutional limits * Georgina Blakeley, University of Huddersfield, UK * The study of city leadership has never been more important. This wide-ranging text makes a valuable and insightful contribution to the debate. Drawing on detailed empirical research, and set in the context of the many theoretical and conceptual debates on leadership, Max Stafford offers an accessible genuinely international comparative study which will be of great interest to scholars of mayors around the world * David Sweeting, University of Bristol, UK *

Author Information

Max W. Stafford is a Teaching Fellow in Politics and Public Administration at the University of Southampton, UK. He is also a Visiting Research Fellow at the Mile End Institute, Queen Mary University of London, UK and Researcher-in-Residence at The Chief of Staff Association.

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