The shire was created on 6 January 1928 under the provisions of the Irrigation Act 1912 from land previously part of Yanko Shire and was originally called Willembong Shire.[3] It was renamed as Leeton Shire on 10 July 1946.[7]
Leeton Shire Council is composed of nine councillors elected proportionally as a single ward. All councillors are elected for a fixed four-year term of office. The mayor is elected by the councillors at the first meeting of the council. The most recent election was held on 4 December 2021, and the makeup of the council is as follows:[8]