See also: Mayoral election in Chicago, Illinois (2023)

Brandon Johnson defeated Paul Vallas in the runoff election for mayor of Chicago, Illinois, on April 4, 2023. Johnson received 51.4% of the vote and Vallas received 48.6%. They advanced from a field of nine candidates in the February 28 general election. Click here to read more about the general election.

Politico's Shia Kapos and Olivia Olander said in February 2023 that the two runoff candidates "could hardly be more different . . . Vallas, who is white, ran to the right of Lightfoot and has focused primarily on public safety. He won the endorsement of Chicago’s conservative Fraternal Order of Police and faced accusations from his rivals of being a Republican despite declaring himself a Democrat. And although Johnson, a Black progressive with the backing of the Chicago Teachers Union, doesn’t use 'defund the police' rhetoric, he has argued for police resources to be redirected to the city’s social service agencies."^[2]

Vallas received 33.7% of the vote in the general election. He was the 2014 Democratic nominee for lieutenant governor. He worked as chief administrative officer at Chicago State University and was the CEO of Chicago Public Schools. On the night of the general election, Vallas said, "Public safety is the fundamental right of every American. It is a civil right. And it is the principle responsibility of government, and we will have a safe Chicago."^[3] The Chicago Fraternal Order of Police endorsed Vallas.

Johnson received 20.3% of the vote in the general election. He was elected to the Cook County Board of Commissioners as a Democrat in 2018. He was a teacher with Chicago Public Schools and an organizer with the Chicago Teachers Union (CTU). In a speech the night of the general election, Johnson thanked the CTU for its support and said, "We get to turn the page of the politics of old . . . Every single child in the city gets to have their needs met."^[4] The CTU endorsed Johnson.

Incumbent Lori Lightfoot finished third with 17.1% of the vote. She was elected mayor in 2019, defeating Toni Preckwinkle 74% to 26% in a runoff election after advancing from a 14-candidate general election field. Lightfoot was the first person elected Chicago mayor to lose a re-election bid since 1983 when Jane Byrne lost her primary.^[5] Mayor Eugene Sawyer, who lost a 1989 primary to Richard Daley, was appointed mayor rather than elected.

Although elections are officially nonpartisan, candidates are typically affiliated with one of the major political parties. Johnson and Vallas are both Democrats. The last Republican mayor of Chicago, William Thompson, left office in 1931.

Chicago adopted the system of nonpartisan general elections with a potential runoff beginning with the 1999 mayoral elections. In the six elections between 1999 and 2019, a runoff election occurred twice (2015 and 2019). A candidate won the other four general elections outright (1999, 2003, 2007, and 2011).

See also: Mayoral election in Denver, Colorado (2023)

Mike Johnston defeated Kelly Brough in a runoff election for mayor of Denver, Colorado, on June 6, 2023. They advanced from a field of 22 candidates in the April 4 general election.

Incumbent Michael Hancock (D), first elected in 2011, was term-limited. This was Denver's fifth open mayoral election since 1959.

Denverite's Kyle Harris wrote that residents "are worried about the city's affordability ... public safety and rising crime ... [and] homelessness. People want solutions, and it's clear that the people of the city understand that the mayor's seat can try to tackle many of these issues." Click here to view candidates' stances on these topics.^[6][7]

Harris said Brough and Johnston were "centrist candidates ... [who] cleaved toward the middle, offering an optimistic vision while gently pushing for using policing in their homelessness solutions."^[8] While the election was officially nonpartisan, Brough and Johnston were Democrats.^[9]

Brough was chief of staff to former Mayor John Hickenlooper from 2003 to 2009 before becoming president and C.E.O. of the Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce, a post she held until 2021.^[10] Brough received an endorsement from The Denver Gazette.^[11]

Johnston was a former educator and school administrator who served in the Colorado Senate from 2007 to 2019. Johnston was the third-place finisher in the state's 2018 Democratic gubernatorial primary. Johnston received an endorsement from The Denver Post.^[12]

Denverite's Harris wrote, "The mayor is powerful ... [and] often described as the strongest elected position in the state."^[13] Denver has a strong mayor government, where the mayor serves as chief executive and the city council operates as a legislative branch. The mayor sets the city budget, nominates department heads, and appoints more than 700 officials citywide. The mayor also oversees the Denver International Airport, police and sheriff departments, and the community planning and development department.^[14]

For coverage of the April 4, 2023, general election, click here.

See also: Mayoral election in Jacksonville, Florida (2023)

Donna Deegan (D) defeated Daniel Davis (R) 52% to 48% in the May 16, 2023, runoff election for mayor of Jacksonville, Florida. They advanced from a field of eight candidates in the March 21, 2023, general election. Click here to read more about the general election.

Incumbent Mayor Lenny Curry (R) was term-limited. At the time of the election, Jacksonville was the most populous American city with a Republican mayor.

Deegan received 39% of the vote in the general election. Deegan founded two philanthropic organizations focused on breast cancer issues, and was a local television news anchor and investigative journalist.^[15][16] In her Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey, Deegan said her priorities included "improvements in infrastructure, public health, housing affordability, and an inclusive economy" and that "For too long, that leadership has been lacking in a City Hall that only works for a handful of well-connected people."

Davis received 25% of the vote in the general election. He was the chief executive officer of the Jacksonville Chamber of Commerce, and served in the Florida House of Representatives representing District 15 from 2010 to 2014.^[17] In his election night speech, he said, "Will we elect a mayor who will stand with our brave men and women in uniform to make Jacksonville safer? Or will we, as Jacksonvillians, go down the pathway of San Francisco and New York?" In addition to his support for law enforcement, he highlighted his support for school choice and said he would "stand with Governor Ron DeSantis (R) to keep Florida free."^[18]

Deegan's endorsements included the Jacksonville chapter of the National Organization for Women PAC, Branch 53 of the North Florida Letter Carriers union, and former Florida Commissioner of Agriculture Nikki Fried's (D) PAC, Won't Back Down.^[19] Davis' endorsements included Jacksonville Sheriff T.K. Waters (R), the Jacksonville Brotherhood of Firefighters, and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis (R).^[20][21]

In 2015, Curry defeated then-incumbent Alvin Brown (D) 51% to 49% in the May runoff election. The 2019 mayoral election was decided in the March general election, with Curry receiving 58% of the vote over Anna Lopez Brosche’s (R) 24%, Omega Allen’s (I) 11%, and Jimmy Hill’s (R) 8%.

As of May 2023, the partisan breakdown of the mayors of the 100 largest U.S. cities was 62 Democrats, 26 Republicans, three independents, and seven nonpartisans. Two mayors' partisan affiliations were unknown.^[22] 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.

See also: Mayoral election in Lincoln, Nebraska (2023)

Incumbent Leirion Gaylor Baird defeated Suzanne Geist in the May 2, 2023, nonpartisan general election for mayor of Lincoln, Nebraska. Gaylor Baird and Geist were the top-two vote-getters in the April 4, 2023, nonpartisan primary.^[23]

Gaylor Baird received 48.6% of the vote in the April 4 primary, and Geist received 33.9%. Stan Parker, a candidate affiliated with the Republican Party, received 17.4%. Parker endorsed Geist after the primary.^[24]

While mayoral elections in Lincoln are officially nonpartisan, candidates are often affiliated with one of the two major political parties. At the time of the election, Gaylor Baird was affiliated with the Democratic Party, and Geist was affiliated with the Republican Party. The last Republican mayor of Lincoln, Mike Johanns, left office in 1998.^[23][25]

Gaylor Baird was first elected mayor in 2019 after she defeated Cyndi Lamm 54.5% to 45.3% in the general election. A former member of Lincoln's City Council, Gaylor Baird said public safety was her top priority. "I will continue to support our first responders with investments in personnel, equipment and facilities,” Gaylor Baird said.^[26][27][28]

Geist, a business owner, represented District 25 in the Nebraska State Senate from 2017 until she resigned on April 6, 2023.^[29] Geist said she would "... support law enforcement, firefighters, and first responders."^[30][31]

Gaylor Baird criticized Geist's Senate voting record on issues including abortion, transgender issues, and concealed firearms. “Her voting record at the state Capitol makes it clear that her priorities are not our shared priorities. … They hurt Lincoln and they hurt Nebraska,” Baird said.^[32]

Geist criticized Gaylor Baird’s record on public safety. Geist tweeted, “It’s important to understand that law enforcement supports me, not @MayorLeirion for a reason. I’ve stood shoulder to shoulder with law enforcement in the legislature because it was the right thing to do. Leirion stood by when there were riots in ‘20 instead of with the police.”^[33]

The Lincoln Fire Fighters Association, EMILY's List and the Sierra Club endorsed Gaylor Baird.^[34][35][36] The Lincoln Police Union, Gov. Jim Pillen (R), and U.S. Sens. Pete Ricketts (R) and Deb Fischer (R) endorsed Geist.^[37]

Both candidates raised more than $1 million each, doubling the previous fundraising record for a Lincoln mayoral race set in 2019.^[38][39]

Heading into 2023, the partisan breakdown of the mayors of the 100 largest U.S. cities was 63 Democrats, 28 Republicans, three independents, and four nonpartisans. Two mayors' partisan affiliations were unknown.^[40]

Lincoln also held elections for seats in the city council and the Lincoln Airport Authority on May 2, 2023.

See also: Mayoral election in Nashville, Tennessee (2023)

Freddie O'Connell defeated Alice Rolli in the September 14, 2023, runoff election for mayor of Nashville, Tennessee. Incumbent Mayor John Cooper (D) did not seek re-election, making him the first Nashville mayor who served a full term in office to not seek re-election since 1991.^[41]

Although municipal elections in Nashville were officially nonpartisan, both candidates had political affiliations. O'Connell, who represented District 19 on the Nashville Metro Council, was a Democrat. Rolli, a former political strategist who was a staffer for Govs. Bill Haslam (R) and Lamar Alexander (R), was a Republican.^[42]

O'Connell and Rolli had advanced from a field of 12 candidates in the city's nonpartisan general election on Aug. 3, 2023, with O'Connell finishing first and Rolli placing second. Click here to read more about the general election.

O'Connell received 27% of the vote in the Aug. 3 general election. Axios Nashville's Nate Rau wrote that O'Connell "overcame substantial campaign disadvantages to storm into first place in a crowded general election field...he sold voters on a progressive vision for the city and highlighted his vote against the $2.1 billion Titans stadium deal as proof of his commitment to controlling development growth."^[43] Before the general election, O'Connell told The Tennessean that his top priorities were improving basic governmental service such as trash pickup and filling potholes, building a better transportation network, and improving the trust residents have in city government.^[44]

Rolli received 20% of the vote in the first round of voting. Axios Nashville's Rau wrote that Rolli "campaigned on addressing crime, keeping taxes low and pressing Metro Nashville Public Schools for improvement. She sold voters on her conservative bona fides by touting her resume."^[43] Before the general election, Rolli told The Tennessean that her top priorities were to ensure that all first graders in the city could read, improving public safety, not increasing taxes, and building a better relationship with the state to address regional issues such as transit and homelessness.^[45]

After reviewing voting data from the general election, The Tennessean's Cassandra Stephenson wrote that "O'Connell-won precincts largely correlate to Davidson County's most populated districts" and "Rolli brought in the most votes in...areas that have historically netted support for candidates with conservative policy views."^[46] Stephenson also wrote that the "O'Connell-Rolli matchup mirrors the 2015 race between Megan Barry and David Fox (who now serves as Rolli's treasurer and campaign manager)."^[46] That year, Barry received 23.5% and Fox received 22.8% in the general election from a seven-candidate field. Barry defeated Fox in the runoff, 55% to 45%.

Matt Wiltshire, who finished third in the general election with 17% of the vote, endorsed O'Connell on Aug. 14.^[47] State Sens. Jeff Yarbro (D) and Heidi Campbell (D)—who finished fourth and fifth, respectively—endorsed O'Connell on Aug. 9 and 10.^[48] Former Nashville school board member Fran Bush, who finished 11th in the general election, endorsed Rolli on Aug. 10.^[49]

As a result of the election, O'Connell became Nashville's fourth mayor in five years. Megan Barry resigned in March 2018 after pleading guilty to felony theft of property. After Barry's resignation, Vice Mayor David Briley assumed office and won a special election to retain the office in Aug. 2018. In the 2019 regular mayoral election, Cooper defeated Briley.^[50]

The Tennessean invited all mayoral candidates to complete a questionnaire on specific policy topics. Click the links below to view each runoff candidate's response:

• O'Connell
• Rolli

Nashville has a strong mayor government, where the mayor serves as chief executive and the city council operates as a legislative branch. The responsibilities of the mayor include proposing a budget, signing legislation into law, appointing departmental directors, and overseeing the city's day-to-day operations.

As of Aug. 2023, Democrats held 64 of the mayoral offices in the 100 largest cities in the country, Republicans held 24, independents held four, and nonpartisan mayors held six. Two mayors' partisan affiliations were unknown.

See also: Mayoral election in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (May 16, 2023 Democratic primary)

Cherelle Parker defeated eight other candidates in the Democratic primary for mayor of Philadelphia on May 16, 2023. She faced David Oh—the only candidate who ran for the Republican nomination—in the general election on November 7, 2023. Incumbent Jim Kenney (D), who was first elected mayor in 2015 and re-elected in 2019, was term-limited.

The city's last 10 mayors were all elected as Democrats, and the last Republican to serve as mayor was Bernard Samuel, whose term ended in 1952. Jeff Brown, Allan Domb, Helen Gym, Parker, and Rebecca Rhynhart had led in fundraising and media mentions.

Parker was elected to the city council in 2016 and served until 2022, when she resigned to run for mayor. She began her political career as a city council staff member and served in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives from 2005 to 2016.^[51] Parker was elected the council's majority leader in 2020.^[52] Her website said, "It was in this role where she focused on public safety, stabilizing “middle neighborhoods,” economic opportunity – especially for small businesses, and working to get city government to function like it should."^[53]

In the three Philadelphia mayoral elections since 1999 that did not have an incumbent, the winner of the Democratic primary received a majority of the vote once—Kenney's 56% in 2015. Michael Nutter won the Democratic primary in 2007 with 37% of the vote and John Street won the Democratic primary in 1999 with 36% of the vote.

Marcus Biddle at WHYY wrote before the election that, "Most candidates are making public health issues like gun violence a campaign priority. How they plan to solve those problems is another story...Improving major public health issues in Philadelphia — the gun violence crisis and the opioid epidemic among them — could be a deciding issue for many voters in the city’s mayoral race...As for the city’s gun violence crisis, most candidates agreed that improving and expanding access to behavioral health support, therapy, and trauma treatment is an urgent need."^[54]

Rhynhart was elected Philadelphia City Controller in 2018 and resigned in 2022 to run for mayor. She was a former director at Fitch Ratings and managing director at Bear Stearns.^[55] Rhynhart was appointed Philadelphia City Treasurer in 2008 by former Mayor Michael Nutter, and also served as the city's Budget Director and Chief Administrative Officer under Mayor Jim Kenney. Rhynhart's website said that her time spent in the city's various financial roles was important: "She used her financial expertise to expose wasteful spending and make government work more effectively with an emphasis on equity, fairness and social justice. She has shown courage in refusing to back down from tough fights in order to serve Philadelphia."^[56]

Gym was elected as an at-large member of the Philadelphia City Council in 2015 and served until 2022, when she resigned to run for mayor. She was the former executive director of Asian Americans United and the co-founder of Parents United for Public Education, which described itself on its website as "a parent-led citywide organization focused on providing an independent voice for parents fighting for public education."^[57] Gym said she ran for mayor "to finish a job I started 30 years ago, when I was a teacher and a tough Philly mom who refused to accept broken systems, took on tough challenges and organized alongside communities for change."^[58]

Before the primary, Anna Orso, Sean Collins Walsh, and Julia Terruso wrote in The Philadelphia Inquirer: "To be clear, all of the major candidates will likely get at least some votes from every pocket of the city. But winning candidates typically have a strong base that they build out from...Rhynhart and Gym are both vying for liberal Center City voters, and Domb and Brown both probably need strong margins in the Northeast if they are going to win. And don’t forget about turnout. While Parker appears to have little competition for establishment-aligned Black voters, their share of the electorate has decreased over time, meaning she, too, will have to expand beyond her base to be successful."^[59]

Domb was elected as an at-large member of the Philadelphia City Council in 2015 and served on the council until 2022, when he resigned to run for mayor. He was a realtor and founded a real estate agency. Domb said he was "running for mayor because Philadelphia is in crisis and needs a leader who has the experience and vision needed to take on our biggest challenges."^[60]

Brown owned 12 grocery stores in the city and had never before run for elected office. He was endorsed by the city’s largest labor union, District Council 33 of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, which represents 9,500 workers.^[61] He told Axios he ran for mayor because "Philadelphia is an amazing city with great potential, but we have been failed by bad leadership. I want to be mayor to serve the people of our city, address structural poverty and make this the city we all deserve."^[62]

Philadelphia has had a resign-to-run rule in its city charter since 1951. According to Henry Savage of The Philadelphia Inquirer, "If you work for the City of Philadelphia or hold an elected position in city government, you have to quit your job first in order to run for another public office. The only exception is if you are an elected official running for re-election."^[63] Domb, Gym, Parker, and Rhynhart all held elected positions in the city until beginning their mayoral campaigns in 2022.

The filing deadline for the primary was March 8, 2023, and the filing deadline for the general election for independent candidates was August 1, 2023.

See also: Mayoral election in Wichita, Kansas (August 1, 2023, primary election)

Lily Wu finished first, and incumbent Brandon Whipple finished second in the top two nonpartisan primary election for mayor of Wichita, Kansas, on August 1, 2023. Wu and Whipple advanced to the November 7, 2023, general election from a field of nine candidates.

Though the race was officially nonpartisan, Wu—a former Republican—was a Libertarian.^[64] Whipple was a Democrat who defeated incumbent Mayor Jeff Longwell (R) in 2019.^[65]

The Wichita Eagle's Chance Swaim and Matthew Kelly wrote that "Political newcomer Lily Wu emerged from the Wichita primary election as the early favorite for the November mayoral election. But Wichita Mayor Brandon Whipple said he’s confident he can win re-election...Going into the general election, Wu holds a sizable fundraising advantage over Whipple...That fundraising advantage and outside spending boost are expected to continue during the general election, which historically has about double the turnout of the primary and much higher spending levels by candidates and outside groups."^[66]

The Sunflower's Mia Hennen reported that "Just over 15% of registered Wichita voters cast their ballots, with 41,221 ballots cast out of 268,852 registered voters."^[67]

Wu was a reporter and news anchor for two Wichita-area television stations for 12 years and also served as a board member for three Wichita-area nonprofit organizations.^[68] At her campaign announcement, she said: "Restoring trust in city hall really has to do with a change in leadership. I think what we need right now is a leader and an ambassador, like I mentioned, that helps bring back the trust (between residents and city representatives)."^[69]

Whipple was a Democratic state legislator from 2013 to 2020.^[70] He said Wichita's most pressing issue was improving public safety: "As Mayor, we must continue to build a safer city. This includes rebuilding trust, investing in programs that address youth violence, domestic violence, human trafficking, and embracing best practices for addressing mental health, substance abuse, and homelessness.^[71]

Wichita State University political science professor Dr. Neal Allen said before the primary that the campaign did not expose major differences between the candidates: "I can see how voters would have a hard time differentiating between the candidates because on a lot of major issues, they are saying very similar things."^[72]

Bryan Frye, who finished third, was the senior director of investor relations at the Kansas Chamber of Commerce. He previously worked in marketing in the broadcast television industry and founded an IT firm.^[73][74] At his campaign kick-off, Frye said, "Wichita can be that next leading city, full of vibrancy and possibility. And we’ll do it with compassion, fairness, grit and forward thinking that has all neighborhoods represented."^[75]

Celeste Racette, who finished fourth, was the founder and chair of Save Century II, an organization whose mission is to preserve Wichita's Century II Performing Arts & Convention Center.^[76] She also was an accountant and auditor in the banking industry and worked for the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.^[76] Racette said, "I’m running for mayor — to be the watchdog of our finances and to provide financial oversight to public over private interests, to enhance public safety and to save Century II."^[77] She switched her party affiliation from Democrat to unaffiliated in 2021.^[64]

Jared Cerullo was a news anchor and reporter who served on Wichita's City Council from 2021 to 2022.^[78] The Wichita Eagle's Matthew Kelly wrote that "Cerullo has emerged as a vocal critic of Mayor Brandon Whipple, who he frequently sparred with on the City Council.^[79] Cerullo said he would avoid partisan politics: “We need to stop playing politics with City Hall and get back to the basics of serving our people. Making sure our roads are fixed, our bridges are fixed, our water is clean, our parks are kept up."^[80]

Shelia Davis, Anthony Gallardo, Tom Kane, and Julie Rose Stroud were also on the ballot. The filing deadline for this election was June 1, 2023.

As of June 2023, Democrats held 62 of the mayoral offices in the 100 largest cities in the United States, Republicans held 26, independents held three, and nonpartisan mayors held seven. Two mayors' partisan affiliations were unknown.

Wichita has a council-manager system of government where the elected city council—which includes the mayor and serves as the city's primary legislative body—appoints a chief executive called a city manager to oversee day-to-day municipal operations and implement the council's policy and legislative initiatives.

See also: City elections in St. Louis, Missouri (2023)

The city of St. Louis, Missouri, held general elections for the Board of Aldermen on April 4, 2023. All 14 seats on the board and the seat of the president of the board were up for election. Eleven incumbents, including Board President Megan Ellyia Green, won re-election. Three incumbents were defeated.

The 2023 election was the first to take place under a new ward system that reduced the number of seats on the board from 28 to 14. Voters approved Proposition R, a charter amendment requiring the size reduction, in 2012, and the board enacted a new 14-ward map in 2021.^[81]

Ahead of the election, KDSK’s Sam Clancy and Mark Maxwell wrote, “For more than a century, 28 members of the Board of Aldermen governed the City of St. Louis. Those days are almost over.”

“Ward reduction changes have been in the making for more than a decade after voters approved the plan back in 2012. "Aldergeddon" has already claimed casualties. A handful of incumbents opted not to seek re-election, shying away from a sharp-elbowed brawl against their colleagues to prolong their political career and others were defeated in the primary,” Clancy and Maxwell said. ^[82]

As a result of the reduction in board size, ten incumbents did not seek re-election in 2023.^[83] Additionally, two wards—Ward 13 and Ward 4—featured incumbent vs. incumbent races.

The three incumbents who lost were:

• Joe Vaccaro (the incumbent in Ward 23): Vaccaro lost to fellow incumbent Bret Narayan (Ward 24) 55% to 45% in the election for the new Ward 4.
• Norma Walker (Ward 22): Walker lost to incumbent Pamela Boyd (Ward 27) 54% to 46% in the election for the new Ward 13.
• Tina Pihl (Ward 9): Pihl lost to Washington University staffer Michael Browning 63% to 36% in the election for the new Ward 9.

Per Proposition R, candidates elected in odd-numbered wards in 2023 would serve an initial two-year term and be eligible to run for four-year terms after that. Candidates elected in even-numbered wards would serve four-year terms. The president of the Board of Aldermen, a separate position elected at large, would also serve a four-year term.^[84][81]

Another initiative affecting the 2023 election, Proposition D, was approved by voters in 2020. The measure made elections open and nonpartisan for the offices of mayor, comptroller, president of the Board of Aldermen, and the Board of Aldermen. The measure also changed the primary election system from plurality voting to approval voting, a voting system in which voters may vote for any number of candidates they choose. Nonpartisan primaries were held on March 7, 2023, and the top two candidates in each primary advanced to a general election.

The Board of Aldermen is St. Louis' equivalent of a city council. It's the city’s primary legislative body, responsible for adopting the city budget, levying taxes, and making or amending city laws, policies, and ordinances. The President of the Board is responsible for presiding over board meetings.

St. Louis also held a nonpartisan general election for a seat on the community college board on April 4, 2023. Nicole Robinson defeated Incumbent Pam Ross in that election. The filing deadline for that election was Dec. 27, 2022.