The City of Prior Lake is a “Plan B” city. This means Prior Lake has a council-manager plan of government where all policy and legislative decisions are the responsibility of the City Council.

Prior Lake residents are represented by the mayor and four City Council members. The mayor serves four-year terms and Council members serve four-year, at-large staggered terms. The mayor and each Council member have one vote apiece. City elections take place in even-numbered years on election day in November.

The Council delegates all administrative duties to a City manager. The manager is accountable to the Council for the effective administration of City business in accordance with Council decisions. The City manager also oversees the day-to-day administrative duties and hires City staff. In addition, the City manager may be removed by the Council at any time, subject to the contractual terms of the employment agreement.