Mayoral election in Memphis, Tennessee (2023)
 |
Special state legislative • Municipal • How to run for office |
 |
|
← 2019
|
| 2023 Memphis elections |
|---|
 |
| Election dates |
| Filing deadline: July 20, 2023 |
| General election: October 5, 2023 Runoff election: November 16, 2023 |
| Election stats |
| Offices up: Mayor |
| Total seats up: 1 (click here for other city elections) |
| Election type: Nonpartisan |
| Other municipal elections |
| U.S. municipal elections, 2023 |
Paul Young won election as mayor of Memphis, Tennessee in the nonpartisan general election on October 5, 2023. Young received 27.7 percent of the vote among the field of 17 candidates. Floyd Bonner finished in second place with 22.5 percent of the vote. Mayor Jim Strickland (D) was term-limited.
According to University of Memphis professor Otis Sanford, the issues of crime and police conduct had an outsized effect in the October election. “[...] The race for mayor will come down [to] who has the clearer and most convincing message — not just about fighting crime, but changing the culture in the police department in light of the police killing of Tyre Nichols,” Sanford said.[1]
Memphis, the 27th-largest city in the U.S., has had a Democratic mayor since 1992. That election, Willie Herenton (also a candidate for mayor this year) defeated then-incumbent Richard Hackett by 146 votes.[2] Herenton was elected to five consecutive terms before he resigned in 2009. Myron Lowery served as mayor pro tem for three months before losing to A. C. Wharton in a special election to fill the rest of Herenton’s term. Wharton served until 2015, when he lost to Jim Strickland, the current incumbent.[3][4][5]
As of August 2023, the partisan breakdown of the mayors of the 100 largest U.S. cities was 64 Democrats, 24 Republicans, four independents, and six nonpartisans. Two mayors' partisan affiliations were unknown. Based on 2020 population estimates, 76.1% of the population of the top 100 cities lived in cities with Democratic mayors, and 16.2% lived in cities with Republican mayors at the start of 2022.
The Memphis mayoral election was one of 40 mayoral elections Ballotpedia is covering in 2023. These include all mayoral elections in the 100 largest U.S. cities by population and all mayoral elections in state capitals.
Memphis also held elections for all 13 seats on the city council in 2023.
Elections
Click on the tabs below to show more information about those topics.
Candidates and results
General election
General election for Mayor of Memphis
The following candidates ran in the general election for Mayor of Memphis on October 5, 2023.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Paul Young (Nonpartisan)  | 27.6 | 24,420 |
 | Floyd Bonner (Nonpartisan) | 22.5 | 19,900 | |
 | Willie Herenton (Nonpartisan) | 21.5 | 18,994 | |
| Van Turner (Nonpartisan) | 21.3 | 18,784 | |
| James Gibson (Nonpartisan) | 2.5 | 2,176 | |
| Michelle McKissack (Nonpartisan) | 1.6 | 1,437 | |
| Joe Brown (Nonpartisan) | 1.2 | 1,030 | |
 | Karen Camper (Nonpartisan) | 0.7 | 591 | |
| James Harvey (Nonpartisan) | 0.4 | 325 | |
 | Brandon Price (Nonpartisan) | 0.1 | 129 | |
 | Carnita Atwater (Nonpartisan) | 0.1 | 122 | |
| Tekeva Shaw (Nonpartisan) | 0.1 | 95 | |
| Jennings Bernard (Nonpartisan) | 0.1 | 89 | |
 | Reggie Hall (Nonpartisan) | 0.1 | 77 | |
| Kendra Calico (Nonpartisan) | 0.1 | 58 | |
| Derek Winn (Nonpartisan) | 0.1 | 57 | |
| Justina Ragland (Nonpartisan) | 0.1 | 53 | |
| Total votes: 88,337 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Frank Colvett Jr. (Nonpartisan)
- George Flinn Jr. (Nonpartisan)
- David Winston (Nonpartisan)
Additional elections on the ballot
- See also: Tennessee elections, 2023
January 24, 2023
March 14, 2023
June 15, 2023
August 3, 2023
October 5, 2023
November 16, 2023
Candidate profiles
This section includes candidate profiles that may be created in one of two ways: either the candidate completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey, or Ballotpedia staff may compile a profile based on campaign websites, advertisements, and public statements after identifying the candidate as noteworthy. For more on how we select candidates to include, click here.
Incumbent: No
Political Office: None
Submitted Biography: "Reggie Hall is a leader with a proven track record of community service, leadership and a strong dedication to his native city of Memphis. As a resident of South Memphis and a graduate of Hamilton High School, Reggie’s values were instilled by his mother, who dedicated her life to service. Reggie has continued this family tradition of service by working in the fields of mental health, rehabilitation and transportation."
This information was current as of the candidate's run for Mayor of Memphis in 2023.
Incumbent: No
Political Office: None
Submitted Biography: "Paul Young is a native Memphian who currently leads major economic and community development efforts as President and CEO of the Downtown Memphis Commission. Growing up in Oakhaven, Paul learned at an early age that there were two Memphises – one ripe with opportunity and prosperity, and another lacking resources and safe neighborhoods. Determined to bridge this divide, Paul pursued a career focused on building a Memphis that works for every resident. Leading the DMC and the City’s Division of Housing and Community Development, Paul applied a holistic approach to unifying the city through public and private partnerships and targeted investments in our future. Paul developed his passion for a service-driven life through the selfless example of his parents Bishop William and Pastor Dianne Young. Their character and willingness to stand and confront the challenges facing Memphis shaped Paul’s approach toward servant leadership. Building a better Memphis requires a mayor who is accessible and responsive to your needs, and Paul is committed to standing in the gap and shouldering the burdens of others. Paul is running for mayor to build a Memphis that every child can one day be proud of and feel welcomed. "
This information was current as of the candidate's run for Mayor of Memphis in 2023.
Mayoral partisanship
Twenty-nine of the 100 largest cities held mayoral elections in 2023. Once mayors elected in 2023 assumed office, Democrats held 63 top-100 mayoral offices, Republicans held 26, Libertarians held one, independents held four, and nonpartisan mayors held four. Two mayors' partisan affiliations were unknown.
The following top 100 cities saw a change in mayoral partisan affiliation in 2023:
- Colorado Springs, Colorado: Independent Yemi Mobolade defeated Republican Wayne W. Williams in the May 16 runoff election. Incumbent John Suthers, a Republican, was term-limited.
- Jacksonville, Florida: Democrat Donna Deegan defeated Republican Daniel Davis in the May 16 runoff election. Incumbent Lenny Curry, a Republican, was term-limited.
- Dallas, Texas: Mayor Eric Johnson announced on September 22 that he was changing his party affiliation from Democratic to Republican.[6]
- Wichita, Kansas: Libertarian Lily Wu defeated incumbent Democratic mayor Brandon Whipple in the November 7 general election.
- Spokane, Washington: Democrat Lisa Brown defeated incumbent Republican mayor Nadine Woodward in the November 7 general election.
What's at stake?
Report a story for this election
Ballotpedia researches issues in local elections across the United States, but information availability is a challenge for us in many areas. Please contact us about the issues that impact your local election. Note that not all submissions may meet Ballotpedia's coverage requirements for inclusion.
Candidate survey
|
|
Ballotpedia invites candidates to participate in its annual survey. |
About the city
- See also: Memphis, Tennessee
Memphis is a city in Shelby County, Tennessee. As of 2020, its population was 633,104.
City government
- See also: Mayor-council government
The city of Memphis uses a strong mayor and city council system. In this form of municipal government, the city council serves as the city's primary legislative body while the mayor serves as the city's chief executive.
Demographics
The following table displays demographic data provided by the United States Census Bureau.
| Demographic Data for Memphis, Tennessee | ||
|---|---|---|
| Memphis | Tennessee | |
| Population | 633,104 | 6,910,840 |
| Land area (sq mi) | 294 | 41,232 |
| Race and ethnicity** | ||
| White | 27.9% | 76.7% |
| Black/African American | 64.4% | 16.7% |
| Asian | 1.8% | 1.8% |
| Native American | 0.2% | 0.3% |
| Pacific Islander | 0% | 0.1% |
| Two or more | 2.2% | 2.9% |
| Hispanic/Latino | 7.4% | 5.6% |
| Bildung | ||
| High school graduation rate | 86.5% | 88.2% |
| College graduation rate | 26.6% | 28.2% |
| Income | ||
| Median household income | $41,864 | $54,833 |
| Persons below poverty level | 24.6% | 14.6% |
| Source: population provided by U.S. Census Bureau, "Decennial Census" (2020). Other figures provided by U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2015-2020). | ||
| **Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here. | ||
See also
| Memphis, Tennessee | Tennessee | Municipal government | Other local coverage |
|---|---|---|---|
 |
 |
 |
 |
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ ABC24, "Opinion | Memphis mayoral race to be about 'substance over style'," February 3, 2023
- ↑ Memphis, the City Magazine, "One Mayor’s Memphis," November 6, 2007
- ↑ Memphis Daily News, "Herenton-Lowery Transition Under Way in Choppy Waters," accessed February 26, 2023
- ↑ Memphis Flyer, "It’s Wharton and “One Memphis," October 15, 2009
- ↑ Commercial Appeal, "Strickland defeats Wharton in Memphis mayor’s race," October 9, 2015
- ↑ Wall Street Journal, "America’s Cities Need Republicans, and I’m Becoming One," September 22, 2023
| |||||||||
