Mayor's Office

Mayor Aaron Hoffman 

Term: January 1, 2026 - December 31, 2029
Phone: 425.327.5748 
Email: hoffman@snohomishwa.gov 

Aaron serves as the Mayor of Snohomish, bringing a leadership style shaped by years of experience as the CFO of a commercial fishing company and a deep belief in teamwork, communication, and shared purpose. With a background in strengthening organizational systems and fostering collaboration across diverse roles, he is committed to building a City Hall culture rooted in professionalism, mutual respect, and clear priorities.

A strong advocate for fiscal stewardship, he focuses on maximizing the value of public resources by supporting effective systems and empowering staff to excel in their work. His approach emphasizes improving outcomes rather than simply reducing inputs, and he views open dialogue with employees as essential to good governance.

Grounded in the values of his family business, he prioritizes internal teamwork, constructive partnerships between City Hall and the City Council, and responsive, respectful service to the community. As Mayor, he is dedicated to listening, learning, and ensuring that every employee understands their vital role in advancing the city’s mission.

Administrative Responsibilities

Under the strong mayor form of government, the mayor serves as the chief executive to administer the city government on a day-to-day basis. 

The Council is responsible as the legislative branch of government and for adopting various policies, ordinances, resolutions, contracts and budgets. 

As a “strong mayor,” (as defined by state law) the mayor has duties including the hiring and firing of staff, negotiating labor agreements, managing city finances and developing proposed policies and future budgets for City Council approval. 

Mayor-Council Relationship

In brief, the Council’s role is to adopt policies for the city, and it is the mayor’s role to carry out those policies. 

The mayor chairs City Council meetings but may vote only to break a tie vote of the Council on matters other than the passage of any ordinance, grant, or revocation of franchise or license, or any resolution for the payment of money.

Ordinances adopted by the City Council may be vetoed by the mayor, though the City Council may override such vetoes with a majority plus one of the whole membership (5 votes).

The Council continues to be responsible for adopting various policies, ordinances, resolutions, contracts and budgets. Instead of electing a mayor among its members to serve for two-year terms, as it had in the past, the Council may elect a council President. The Council President would chair Council meetings and substitute for the mayor only in the absence of the mayor.

The City Council continues to be comprised of seven members elected at large for staggered, four-year terms.