Peter Talseth

The mayor is elected by the municipal council for four years and chairs the meetings of the municipal council and the chairmanship. Mayor is the highest office of trust in a municipality, and the mayor is also the municipality's legal representative. This means that he signs on behalf of the municipality in all cases where the municipal council has not assigned this authority to others. The mayor's most important task is to lead the meetings of the municipal council and the chairmanship, where the elected members make joint decisions. The mayor does not have the authority to make decisions on behalf of the municipality on his own. The exception can be minor matters that are not of fundamental importance, if the municipal council has given the mayor authority to do so.

On a daily basis, the mayor, on behalf of the elected representatives, has close contact with the councillor, who is the municipality's administrative head. The mayor also represents the municipality on official visits, has contact with residents, associations and businesses and is often the municipality's external face. The mayor has the right to attend and speak in all elected bodies, but not the right to vote if he is not an elected member.