Helen Wilkes (April 4, 1927 – October 7, 2015) was an American businesswoman, nurse and politician. Wilkes, who served as a city commissioner of West Palm Beach, Florida, from 1976 to 1988, became the city's first female Mayor in 1978. Wilkes was born Helen Barbour in Fort Valley, Georgia. She had five siblings. She was best known for her political career in city government. She first joined the West Palm Beach City Commission in 1976, ultimately serving on the commission from 1976 to 1987. She simultaneously elected West Palm Beach's first female Mayor by the City Commission on March 30, 1978.