Auckland City Council has one of the longest-standing youth councils in Aotearoa New Zealand. It enables young people to learn about their community, their city and their local government. The process of engaging young people in large cities offers unique challenges for youth councils to reflect the diversity of cities and provide meaningful participation in civic affairs. Following a review, the Auckland City Youth Council restructured in 2009 to enable it to be more engaging for young people, and more effective in decision-making. This paper discusses the role of power and youth development for youth participation in local government political decision-making processes.