North Yorkshire Council’s Cllr John Ritchie, the local member for Woodlands division, was elected after a vote of the charter trustees for Scarborough.
The non-political role will involve Cllr Ritchie attending ceremonial and civic occasions, including Remembrance events and charity functions.
The charter trustees were established on April 1 when Scarborough Borough Council, including the role of the borough’s mayor, was abolished, along with the county council and the county’s other six borough and district councils, to be replaced by North Yorkshire Council.
The trustees are made up of the six councillors who represent the unparished areas of Scarborough and ensure the continuation of the civic, historic and ceremonial traditions of the former borough council.
Cllr Ritchie said: “It is a great honour for me to be the Charter Mayor of Scarborough for the next 12 months.
“The history of Scarborough mayors dates back to 1836, so it was important to all of us as charter trustees that we did not allow that line to be broken.
“There are a great number of worthwhile causes and charities in Scarborough and I hope to support as many of them as possible in my time as Charter Mayor.”
At the same meeting, Cllr Janet Jefferson of the Castle division was voted in as Deputy Charter Mayor.
Cllr Jefferson said: “Having previously served as the Mayor of the Borough of Scarborough I did not think I would get another chance to act in a civic role, so I am delighted to be the Deputy Charter Mayor for the next year.”
A community governance review is currently ongoing into the possible creation of town councils for Scarborough and Harrogate to ensure grassroots democracy is extended across the whole of North Yorkshire.
Should a town council be created in Scarborough, it would be formed for administrative purposes from April 2024, and the first elections would be on May 2, 2024, when 15 town councillors would be elected for a reduced term of three years.
At this point the charter trustees would be abolished and the power to elect the mayor passed to the town councillors.
Elections for the town council would then take place every four years from 2027.
Consultation on the draft recommendations is continuing with the conclusions to be presented to North Yorkshire Council this summer.
Residents have until May 5 to take part in the consultation.