The first Whakatāne County Council was formed in 1876 and mainly covered the same areas of today’s Ōpōtiki and Whakatāne districts. 

In 1900, the first council split and became the Ōpōtiki County Council and the second Whakatāne County Council. The latter took care of all local government matters until 1917, when the Whakatāne Borough Council and the third Whakatāne County Council were formed.

These two bodies, together with the Whakatāne Harbour Board, amalgamated in 1976 to become the Whakatāne District Council. 

In 1989, in line with the nation-wide reorganisation of local government happening at the time, the Whakatāne District Council amalgamated with the Murupara Borough Council. It also took in a portion of the Ōpōtiki district in the Waimana/Nukuhou area, and a portion of the Taupō district comprising a large part of the Kaingaroa Forest.