HAMPTON—Franklin Mayor Jim Councill has been named president of the Virginia Municipal League, a statewide association of city, town and county governments.

Councill was elected during the association’s annual conference last week in Hampton.

“It’s a real treat to be able to represent all the cities and towns across the state of Virginia,” Councill said Tuesday. “The staff does an amazing amount of lobbying on behalf of the interests of cities and towns.”

Councill served as president-elect of VML in 2009-10 and as vice president in 2008-09. He also has served as chairman of the association’s City Section and as an at-large member of the 13-member governing Executive Committee.

During his one-year term as president, Councill wants the association to keep its “eye on the ball of representing the interests of all cities and towns at the General Assembly.”

He also stressed the importance of regionalism and early childhood education.

“We, in Franklin, Southampton and Isle of Wight have benefited from regional cooperation and have done a really good job of working on things regionally,” Councill said.

According to a news release from VML, the organization’s membership includes 39 cities, 157 towns and 11 counties. Locally, the towns of Boykins, Courtland, Ivor, Newsoms and Windsor are members, as well as the City of Franklin.

Boykins Mayor Spier Edwards said VML has been a valuable resource for the town through the years, and he said Councill would do a “fantastic job” as president.

“He’s well-respected, he’s well-known and we are very fortunate to have someone in our local area up there,” Edwards said. “They have really given our town support in several different areas.”