City Leadership
The Mayor’s Office
The Mayor
Gina-Louise Sciarra
The desk Gina-Louise Sciarra works at once launched a president: Calvin Coolidge ran Northampton as mayor in 1910 and 1911 before he ran the country. Sciarra is the city’s 45th mayor and its chief executive under the charter, responsible for the administration of every city department. She enforces the city’s laws and ordinances, appoints some department heads and members of many boards and commissions, and each year submits a balanced budget to the City Council, which votes on her numbers and can turn them down. The charter also hands the Mayor a second job: she chairs the School Committee by virtue of the office, sits as a trustee of Smith Vocational and Agricultural High School, and represents Hampshire County on the regional workforce board. Sciarra learned the building from the legislative side first. She served four terms on the City Council, three representing Ward 4 and one at large, and her colleagues elected her Council Vice President in 2017 and Council President in 2019, both times unanimously. Before elected office she managed communications for Pathlight, a western Massachusetts organization serving people with developmental and intellectual disabilities, and she first came to the city as a student at Smith College, class of 1996. Voters elected her mayor in November 2021. On November 4, 2025 they re-elected her to a second four-year term by 76 votes, 4,637 to 4,561. Every close election is a working lesson in what one ballot is worth, and this city just taught it.
| Role | Mayor (chief executive) |
|---|---|
| In office | First elected November 2021; second term began January 5, 2026 |
| Term | Four-year term |
| Office | City Hall, 210 Main Street, 2nd Floor, Northampton, MA 01060 |
| Phone | 413-587-1249 |
| mayor@northamptonma.gov | |
| Hours | Monday to Friday, 8:30 AM to 4:30 PM |
| Website | northamptonma.gov |
What the Mayor Does
- Runs the departments. The Mayor is responsible for the administration of all city departments and for enforcing every city law and ordinance.
- Builds the budget. Each year the Mayor submits a balanced budget to the City Council, which holds public hearings and votes on it.
- Appoints, with a check. The Mayor appoints some department heads and members of many boards and commissions, and appointments to multi-member boards need City Council approval.
- Chairs the School Committee. Under the charter the Mayor holds a seat on the School Committee and chairs it, linking City Hall directly to the classroom.
An Election Decided by 76 Votes
Northampton’s 2025 mayoral race is the best civics lesson the city has produced in years. A September preliminary narrowed four candidates to two: Sciarra, the incumbent, and Jillian Duclos, a challenger. The campaign turned on real questions, including how to fund the schools and how to rebuild Main Street. On November 4, 2025, the count came in at 4,637 for Sciarra and 4,561 for Duclos. Seventy six votes, in a city of more than 23,000 registered voters, decided who runs City Hall for the next four years. If you take one number away from this page, take that one: in a city election, your ballot is not a drop in an ocean. It is a measurable share of the answer.
Contact & Engage
- City Hall: 210 Main Street, Northampton, MA 01060. Main line 413-587-4900.
- Mayor’s Office: 413-587-1249, mayor@northamptonma.gov.
- Show up: the City Council meets on the first and third Thursday of the month at 6:30 p.m., and every regular meeting opens with public comment.
- Go deeper: the Mayor’s page at northamptonma.gov posts budgets, policy orders, and press releases.
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