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A mayor was a citizen, presumably appointed by the Capitol, who ran their district's local government. This position afforded them a degree of wealth and privilege unavailable to most district citizens.[1]

Tasks[]

The mayor's role in local government amounted to carrying out the will of the Capitol within their district. They had no apparent hand in policymaking, but they could put pressure on the Peacekeepers to enforce laws more harshly, as was the case with the mayor of District 11. Rue said he was "very strict" about publicly whipping people who ate the crops they grew for the Capitol.[2] The mayor's other known duties were largely ceremonial.

Reapings[]

Main article: The Reaping

Each district's mayor was obligated to host the annual reaping for the Hunger Games. First, the mayor gave a scripted speech about the disasters and wars that led to the creation of Panem, leading into a recollection of the First Rebellion and the Dark Days. Then they read a list of the district's past victors before introducing the escort, who would conduct the actual reaping.[1] Once the tributes were chosen and called onto the stage, the mayor concluded the event by reading aloud the Treaty of Treason and having the tributes shake hands.[3]

During the first ten years of the Games, the escort role did not yet exist, so mayors selected and read out the tributes' names themselves. That made it simple for a mayor to rig the results.[4]

Other[]

Status[]

Mayors and their families enjoyed a number of privileges. For example, they had access to classified information not available to the rest of the district population, such as television updates on the uprising of District 8[6] and Capitol newspapers.[7]

Mayors were also considerably wealthy compared to other district citizens. They could feed their families and still have money to spare, so although their children were not exempt from the reaping, they would never have to sign up for tesserae, so it was less likely that their names would be picked.[1] Mayor Lipp was wealthy enough to afford a car,[8] which was uncommon in District 12;[9] however, even then, he owned an outdated model by Capitol standards.[8] Mayor Undersee was also able to afford morphling[10] to treat his wife's debilitating headaches.[6]

Despite their advantages, mayors were subject to the same travel rules as ordinary district citizens. They were not allowed to go to the Capitol unless invited, so Mrs. Undersee could not receive treatment there.[6] Later, when the bombing of District 12 took place, Mayor Undersee, his wife, and daughter Madge were left to die with the rest of District 12 instead of being evacuated to the Capitol.[11]

Mayor Lipp

Mayor Lipp in The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes.

Known mayors[]

Trivia[]

References[]

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 The Hunger Games, Chapter 1
  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 The Hunger Games, Chapter 15
  3. 3.0 3.1 The Hunger Games, Chapter 2
  4. 4.0 4.1 4.2 The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, Chapter 2
  5. Catching Fire, Chapter 4
  6. 6.0 6.1 6.2 Catching Fire, Chapter 6
  7. Catching Fire, Chapter 13
  8. 8.0 8.1 The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, Chapter 22
  9. The Hunger Games, Chapter 3
  10. Catching Fire, Chapter 8
  11. Mockingjay, Chapter 27
  12. The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes
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