Mayor McCheese was the McDonald’s character designed with a cheeseburger for a head and presented as a fictional mayor.
The character appeared in McDonaldland advertising wearing formal civic clothing, including a sash. His unusual design turned the cheeseburger itself into a personified symbol of the restaurant’s menu. That approach was different from characters such as Ronald McDonald, whose design was based on a clown, and Grimace, whose identity was more abstract.
Mayor McCheese belonged to the same branded world as the Hamburglar and other McDonald’s advertising characters. His role was primarily promotional and fictional, not a representation of an actual government office or real city. The title was part of the playful fantasy setting used in children’s marketing.
The character is sometimes confused with Officer Big Mac, another McDonaldland figure whose name referenced the Big Mac. Their titles and food-themed designs reflect how extensively McDonald’s used menu items and restaurant ideas to build a cast of mascots.