SANFORD — Three candidates, including a current city councilor, will run to become the city’s first popularly elected mayor.

Five candidates will compete for one, three-year city council term and four candidates are seeking to fill two, three-year terms on the school committee on Nov. 5.

Bradford Littlefield, a current city councilor, will face off against Richard Stanley and Thomas Cote in the city’s first-ever mayoral race. The mayoral position was created when residents last year approved charter changes that also eliminated Sanford’s representative town meeting.

Littlefield was involved with developing and promoting the charter changes, which also switched Sanford’s designation from a town to a city.

Stanley is president of the Sanford-Springvale Chamber of Commerce. Thomas Cote served on the city’s budget committee and is a past town meeting member, said City Clerk Sue Cote.

Because of the changes to the charter, Sanford’s mayor will now be the seventh member of the city council, Cote said. Five candidates, including incumbent Kenneth Burgess, are running to fill the one open seat on the council this fall.

School committee Vice Chairman Robert Gendron and current board member are seeking reelection to the board. They are being challenged by Scott Sheppard and John Roux, who currently is serving on the school committee to fill part of an unexpired term.

Roux was appointed to serve for the remainder of the calendar year after Adam Cote resigned his seat early this year. Thomas Miscio is running unopposed to serve the remainder of the term, which expires in December 2014.

Nomination papers were due to the city clerk Monday evening.