THE INTERNET — When voters in Cherokee County’s five municipalities go to the polls on Aug. 28, they’ll be looking to elect mayoral and council candidates who display a “willingness ... to cooperate with other council members in granting time, knowledge and experience toward representing the citizens of the municipality.”

At least, such is the advice of the Alabama League of Municipalities.

Established in 1935, the League serves over 440 cities and towns in the state. Voluntary membership in the organization is designed to bring local officials together “in fellowship of public service,” according to the League website (www.alalm.org).

An article on the site written by the League’s general counsel, Ken Smith, and titled “Duties of the mayor and council,” lays out plainly the duties of mayors and council members and how their roles both vary and merge together for the good of those they are elected to serve.

A town’s mayor serves as the head of the executive branch, the League’s website explains, overseeing “day-to-day operations.” In towns the size of all five in Cherokee County, he or she also presides over council meetings and serves as a member of the council.

The site further explains that the mayor is “charged with the duty of supervision of the affairs of the city under policies fixed by the council.”

Council members acts as the legislative branch and have authority “over the finances and the property of the municipality.”

The site also reminds citizens and council members that individual council members, acting alone, “have no greater power or authority than any other citizen.”

“The council can only act as a body at a legally convened meeting,” the site explains.

Smith’s article also encourages local officials to be sincere and direct in their dealings with one another.

“Officials must recognize that they have dedicated themselves for the next four years to accomplishing a common goal—providing ... the best government possible.”

Smith writes that arguments are a way of life in small-town government.

“At times the mayor and council will disagree over the best solution to a problem. Disagreement is not only inevitable, it can be healthy.”