The nominatio of the municipal magistrates in the late Roman codification

Abstract

It is a commonplace of the literature that the elections performed by the municipal assemblies were replaced by the appointment via the municipal councils by the 3rd century AD. However, the exact content of the word nominatio is obscure in this process, and it is sometimes identified with the nominatio known from the earlier municipal charters, that is, the nomination of the candidates, and thus it must have been followed by a formal election. This article examines the relevant texts of the late Roman codification and proves that from the end of the principate the nominatio was technically the appointment of the actual magistrates, not the nomination of the candidates.