The Mayor of Colombo is the elected head of the Colombo Municipal Council. The post was created in 1866 when the Colombo Municipal Council was established by the Legislative Council of Ceylon. The mayor is assisted by the deputy mayor and a Municipal Commissioner. Since 1944 all but two of the mayors that have served have been from the United National Party (UNP), with one being a UNP-backed independent.

The Colombo Municipal Council is the municipal governing body of Colombo, the largest city and financial centre in Sri Lanka. It consists of a directly elected executive Mayor of Colombo, and elected 119 municipal councilors. The council was formed in 1865, it first met in 1866 and derives most of its powers from Municipal Council Ordinance No. 29 of 1947.