Perth has a new acting Lord Mayor after a surprising series of events this week.

Three councillors were in the running to become deputy mayor this week, a position that has extra significance at the moment due to the absence of Lord Mayor Lisa Scaffidi.

After nearly three hours of negotiations, contenders James Limnios and Reece Harley dropped out of the race, leaving Jemma Green to be nominated and elected unopposed.

The vote makes Ms Green deputy lord mayor, with extra responsibilities given the fact that Lord Mayor Lisa Scaffidi has stood aside pending the outcome of an appeal against her disqualification from the office.

Ms Scaffidi was disqualified after being found to have seriously breached the Local Government Act’s rules about the declaration of gifts and travel benefits.

Ms Green said she would seek to restore stability and credibility at the Council.

“Look I'm not going to gloss over tensions,” she said.

“But I would say that last night it was pretty historic that we all came together and agreed.

“There haven't been a lot of conversations going on between councillors and last night there was an opportunity for people to clear the air and say what didn't work, clean that up, and also undertake how we were going to work together going forward.”

Ms Green is the chair of Power Ledger, a Perth-based energy trading startup.

She is also a Research Fellow and PhD candidate at Curtin University, where she focuses on sustainable cities and renewable energy.

The election makes Ms Green Perth’s third leader in less than two months.

If the Court of Appeal upholds the order disqualifying Ms Scaffidi, Mr Limnios and Mr Harley are seen as likely candidates in a special election for Lord Mayor.

WA Local Government Minister David Templeman said it was time for the Council to move on.

“All of those eight councillors need to understand the severity of the situation that the Council has suffered through this prolonged process associated with the Lord Mayor position,” he said.

“People have lost confidence and I think there has been damage to the reputation of the City of Perth. It should be a shining light, a demonstration of quality governance and good leadership. That hasn't happened in my view over the last couple of years, it's been dogged by an ongoing and prolonged process around the Lord Mayor position.

“It's time to draw a line in the sand, it's time to move forward, it is time for them to get their act together and act collectively in the best interests of the people that they represent.”