The 2023 Memphis mayoral election took place on October 5, 2023. Incumbent Jim Strickland is term-limited and could not seek re-election to a third term in office. The election used the

plurality vote Plurality voting refers to electoral systems in which a candidate, or candidates, who poll more than any other counterpart (that is, receive a plurality), are elected. In systems based on single-member districts, it elects just one member per ...

system, with no possibility of a runoff. The election was officially non-partisan, but several candidates were affiliated with political parties. Municipal government official

Paul Young Paul Antony Young (born 17 January 1956) is an English musician, singer and songwriter. Formerly the frontman of the short-lived bands Kat Kool & the Kool Cats, Streetband and Q-Tips, he became a teen idol with his solo success in the 1980s. ...

won the election, with all other major candidates conceding on the night of the election. Young prevailed with a low plurality of the vote against numerous other candidates, including Shelby County Sheriff Floyd Bonner, former mayor Willie Herenton, and former Shelby County commission chair Van Turner.

Background

Ordinance 5823

Memphis law states that mayors can only serve two terms. However, the Memphis City Council voted to put an ordinance on the ballot that, if passed, would extend the limit to three terms. Incumbent mayor Jim Strickland expressed interest in running for a third term if Memphis voters approved the ordinance. The ordinance was decided on August 4, 2022, the same day as Tennessee's regularly-scheduled primary elections. Voters overwhelmingly rejected it, keeping the two-term limit in place and barring Strickland from seeking re-election.

Early voting

Early voting ran from September 16, 2023 to September 30, 2023. Turnout was the highest since 2007, with 57,951 votes being submitted. This compares to 52,718 early votes in 2019 and 51,840 in 2015.

Candidates

Declared

The following 17 candidates are on the ballot: *Carnita Atwater, community organizer and Democratic candidate for Governor of Tennessee in

2022 File:2022 collage V1.png, Clockwise, from top left: Road junction at Yamato-Saidaiji Station several hours after the assassination of Shinzo Abe; Anti-government protest in Sri Lanka in front of the Presidential Secretariat; The global monkeypo ...

( I) *Jennings Bernard, private probation company owner (I) *Floyd Bonner, Shelby County Sheriff ( D) * Joe Brown, former host of

Judge Joe Brown ''Judge Joe Brown'' is an American arbitration-based reality court show starring former Shelby County, Tennessee criminal court judge Joseph B. Brown. It premiered on September 14, 1998 and ran through the 2012–13 television season for a ...

and former Shelby County Criminal Court judge (I) *Kendra Calico, hunger relief charity president (I) *

Karen Camper Karen D. Camper (born January 15, 1958) is an American politician and a Democratic member of the Tennessee House of Representatives representing District 87 since her special election March 31, 2008 to fill the vacancy caused by the death of Gary ...

, Minority Leader of the Tennessee House of Representatives (D) *J.W. Gibson, former Shelby County commissioner *Reggie Hall, life coach *James Harvey, former Democratic chair of the Shelby County Commission ( R) * Willie Herenton, former mayor (D) *Michelle McKissack, chair of the Shelby County Board of Education (D) *Brandy (Brandon) Price, activist (D) *Justina Ragland *Tekeva Shaw, life coach *Van Turner, former chair of the Shelby County Commission (D) *Derek Winn, bakery assistant (I) *

, president and CEO of the Downtown Memphis Commission and former director of the Memphis Division of Housing and Community Development (D)

Withdrawn

* Frank Colvett,

city council A municipal council is the legislative body of a municipality or local government area. Depending on the location and classification of the municipality it may be known as a city council, town council, town board, community council, rural counc ...

or (R); withdrew July 27, 2023

Endorsements

Polling

Campaign finance

Results

Notes

References

Memphis Memphis most commonly refers to: * Memphis, Egypt, a former capital of ancient Egypt * Memphis, Tennessee, a major American city Memphis may also refer to: Places United States * Memphis, Alabama * Memphis, Florida * Memphis, Indiana * Memp ...

Mayoral elections in Memphis, Tennessee