To understand how this city ended up with near-monarchical powers conferred on the mayor, look back to the political chaos at the end of the 19th century when infighting Republicans took control of the City Council and the mayor’s office.

So says Matthew Crenson, professor emeritus at Johns Hopkins University and author of Baltimore: A Political History.

Dating back over a century, the “strong mayor charter,” said Crenson, “was a reaction to political chaos. . . designed to keep City Council’s hands out of the budget.”

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