2023 Memphis mayoral election

The 2023 Memphis mayoral election took place on October 5, 2023, to elect the next mayor of Memphis, Tennessee. Incumbent Jim Strickland was term-limited and could not seek re-election to a third term in office.^[2][3][4] The election used the plurality vote system, with no possibility of a runoff. The election was officially non-partisan, but several candidates were affiliated with political parties.^[5]

2023 Memphis mayoral election

← 2019 October 5, 2023 Officially nonpartisan 2027 →
Turnout	23.8% [1] 2.9 pp
Candidate Paul Young Floyd Bonner Party Democratic Democratic Popular vote 24,408 19,895 Percentage 27.62% 22.51%   Candidate Willie Herenton Van Turner Party Democratic Democratic Popular vote 18,990 18,778 Percentage 21.49% 21.25%
Results by precinct Young:      20–30%      30–40%      40–50%      50–60% Bonner:      20–30%      30–40%      40–50%      50–60% Herenton:      20–30%      30–40%      40–50% Turner:      20–30%      30–40% Tie:      20–30%      40–50%      No votes
Mayor before election Jim Strickland Democratic Elected mayor Paul Young Democratic

Municipal government official Paul Young 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.^[6]

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.^[2][3] 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.^[4]

Memphis Ordinance 5823[7]
Choice		Votes	%
	Against	52,582	66.27%
	For	26,759	33.73%
Total votes		79,341	100.00%

Precinct results

  Against

•   70–80%
•   60–70%
•   50–60%

  No data

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.^[8]

Candidates

Declared

The following 17 candidates are on the ballot:^[9][a]

• Carnita Atwater, community organizer and Democratic candidate for Governor of Tennessee in 2022 (I)^[9][10]
• Jennings Bernard, private probation company owner (I)^[11]
• Floyd Bonner, Shelby County Sheriff (D)^[12]
• Joe Brown, former host of Judge Joe Brown and former Shelby County Criminal Court judge (I)^[13]
• Kendra Calico, hunger relief charity president (I)^[9][11]
• Karen Camper, Minority Leader of the Tennessee House of Representatives (D)^[14]
• J.W. Gibson, former Shelby County commissioner^[15]
• Reggie Hall, life coach^[11]
• James Harvey, former Democratic chair of the Shelby County Commission (R)^[16]
• Willie Herenton, former mayor (D)^[17]
• Michelle McKissack, chair of the Shelby County Board of Education (D)^[18][19]
• Brandy (Brandon) Price, activist (D)^[9][11]
• Justina Ragland^[9]
• Tekeva Shaw, life coach^[9][11]
• Van Turner, former chair of the Shelby County Commission (D)^[20]
• Derek Winn, bakery assistant (I)^[9][11]
• Paul Young, president and CEO of the Downtown Memphis Commission and former director of the Memphis Division of Housing and Community Development^[21] (D)^[22]

Withdrawn

• Frank Colvett, city councilor (R); withdrew July 27, 2023^[23]

Endorsements

Floyd Bonner

Organizations

• Memphis Police Association^[24]
• Memphis Fire Fighters Association^[24]

Van Turner

Federal politicians

• Steve Cohen, U.S. Representative for Tennessee's 9th congressional district^[25]

State legislators

• Justin Pearson, state representative^[25]

County officials

• Lee Harris, mayor of Shelby County^[25]

Labor unions

• American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Local 1733^[25]

Organizations

• Planned Parenthood Tennessee (co-endorsement with Paul Young)^[25]
• Stand for Children^[25]

Paul Young

Individuals

• Craig Brewer, film director^[26]
• NLE Choppa, rapper^[26]
• Elliot Perry, former professional basketball player^[26]

Organizations

• Planned Parenthood Tennessee (co-endorsement with Van Turner)^[26]
• Shelby County Young Democrats^[26]

Polling

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size[b]	Margin of error	Floyd Bonner	Joe Brown	Karen Camper	Frank Colvett	J.W. Gibson	Willie Herenton	Michelle McKissack	Van Turner	Paul Young	Undecided
Hart Research[27]	Sept. 5-7 2023	-	± 5%	19%	4%	1%	-	5%	13%	3%	9%	20%	23%
Emerson College[28]	August 11–13, 2023	600 (LV)	± 3.9%	10%	10%	≤1%	-	5%	16%	3%	7%	14%	26%
HIT Strategies[29]	May 2023	400 (LV)	± 4.9%	9%	4%	1%	4%	1%	13%	2%	9%	8%	48%
Caissa Public Strategy[30]	May 2023	600 (LV)	± 4.0%	15%	9%	3%	3%	3%	15%	6%	17%	8%	21%
Caissa Public Strategy[31]	February 2023	1,000 (LV)	± 4.7%	15%	3%	4%	3%	2%	14%	4%	16%	12%	13%

Campaign finance

2022-2023 Campaign Finance Reporting^[32][33]

Candidate	Total Receipts	Total Disbursements	Cash on Hand[c]	Loans Outstanding
Floyd Bonner	$757,346	$600,102	$157,244	$34,951
Karen Camper	$125,567	$109,716	$15,851	$4,500
Frank Colvett	$157,450	$125,924	$31,526	$0
J.W. Gibson	$401,473	$398,380	$3,093	$300,000
Willie Herenton	$105,293	$54,652	$50,641	$0
Michelle McKissack	$155,957	$133,434	$22,523	$25,000
Van Turner	$564,435	$450,790	$133,645	$0
Paul Young	$1,059,250	$855,283	$203,967	$0

Results

2023 Memphis mayoral election results^[34]

Candidate		Votes	%
Paul Young		24,408	27.6%
Floyd Bonner		19,895	22.5%
Willie Herenton		18,990	21.5%
Van Turner		18,778	21.3%
J.W. Gibson		2,175	2.5%
Michelle McKissack		1,437	1.6%
Joe Brown		1,028	1.2%
Karen Camper		591	0.7%
James Harvey		325	0.4%
Brandon Price		129	0.1%
Carnita Atwater		122	0.1%
Tekeva Shaw		95	0.1%
Jennings Bernard		89	0.1%
Reggie Hall		77	0.1%
Kendra Calico		57	0.1%
Derek Winn		57	0.1%
Justina Ragland		53	0.1%
Write-in		77	0.1%
Total votes		88,383	100%

See also

• 2023 Jackson, Tennessee mayoral election
• 2023 Knoxville, Tennessee mayoral election
• 2023 Nashville, Tennessee mayoral election

Notes

1. Key:
   D – Democratic Party
   I – Independent
   R – Republican Party
2. Key:
   A – all adults
   RV – registered voters
   LV – likely voters
   V – unclear
3. As of September 25, 2023

References

1. "Turnout | Shelby County Election Commission, TN". www.electionsshelbytn.gov. Retrieved January 17, 2024.
2. "Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland considering running for third term, if city council extends term limits". localmemphis.com. May 26, 2022. Retrieved July 4, 2022.
3. Hardiman, Samuel (May 24, 2022). "Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland will 'seriously consider' possibility of a third-term". The Commercial Appeal. Archived from the original on May 26, 2022. Retrieved July 4, 2022.
4. "After hours-long delay, the results are in | Here's a look at who won Shelby County's hot races". August 5, 2022.
5. "Memphis Municipal Election 10.5.2023 | Shelby County Election Commission, TN". www.electionsshelbytn.gov. Retrieved August 14, 2023.
6. Anderson, Courtney (October 5, 2023). "Paul Young claims victory in Memphis mayoral election". WREG. Retrieved October 5, 2023.
7. "State and Federal Primary and County General". Archived from the original on August 20, 2022. Retrieved December 17, 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
8. "Early voting total highest since 2007 Memphis elections". Memphis Local, Sports, Business & Food News | Daily Memphian. Retrieved October 2, 2023.
9. "City of Memphis Municipal Election, October 5, 2023" (PDF). Shelby County. Retrieved August 1, 2023.
10. Henry, Wiley (March 9, 2023). "Memphis Meeting to Discuss a Third Political Party Draws Scant Support for Now". The Tennessee Tribune. Retrieved August 14, 2023.
11. "Here's who else is running to be Memphis' next mayor". Memphis Local, Sports, Business & Food News | Daily Memphian. Retrieved September 5, 2023.
12. Hardiman, Samuel (October 25, 2022). "Floyd Bonner will run for Memphis mayor". The Commercial Appeal. Archived from the original on December 5, 2022.
13. "More to Come".
14. "TN House Minority Leader Karen Camper announces run for Memphis mayor".
15. Hardiman, Samuel (December 15, 2022). "Businessman J.W. Gibson II planning run for Memphis mayor". The Commercial Appeal. Archived from the original on March 14, 2023.
16. Baker, Jackson (March 8, 2023). "Going the Distance". Memphis Flyer. Retrieved August 1, 2023.
17. Finton, Lucas (February 6, 2023). "Former Memphis Mayor Willie Herenton announces bid to return to office". The Commercial Appeal. Archived from the original on March 14, 2023.
18. "MSCS board member Michelle McKissack makes it official: She's running for Memphis mayor".
19. "Michelle McKissack for Memphis Mayor — ActBlue".
20. "Shelby County Commissioner Van Turner confirms he is running for mayor".
21. Hardiman, Samuel (September 1, 2022). "Paul Young, a longtime public servant, will run for Memphis mayor in 2023". The Commercial Appeal. Archived from the original on September 26, 2022.
22. "Paul Young for Memphis Mayor — ActBlue".
23. "Frank Colvett drops out of mayor's race, says field is too crowded". Memphis Local, Sports, Business & Food News | Daily Memphian. Retrieved July 27, 2023.
24. "The Commercial Appeal". www.commercialappeal.com. Retrieved September 26, 2023.
25. "Van Turner nets endorsements in Memphis mayoral race from top officials, city employee union". The Commercial Appeal. Retrieved September 26, 2023.
26. "Paul Young endorsements range from Young Democrats, Planned Parenthood to NLE Choppa". The Commercial Appeal. Retrieved September 26, 2023.
27. Hart Research
28. Emerson College
29. HIT Strategies
30. Caissa Public Strategy
31. Caissa Public Strategy
32. "Financial Disclosures | Shelby County Election Commission, TN". www.electionsshelbytn.gov. Retrieved July 27, 2023.
33. "Four mayoral candidates spent $1.76M combined over summer". Memphis Local, Sports, Business & Food News | Daily Memphian. Retrieved October 2, 2023.
34. Gowins, Max (October 5, 2023). "Election Results: Memphis Municipal Elections". Decision Desk HQ. Retrieved November 10, 2023.

External links

Official campaign websites

• Floyd Bonner (D) for Mayor
• Joe Brown (I) for Mayor
• Karen Camper (D) for Mayor
• Frank Colvett (R) for Mayor
• J.W. Gibson for Mayor
• Willie Herenton (D) for Mayor
• Michelle McKissack (D) for Mayor
• Van Turner (D) for Mayor
• Paul Young (D) for Mayor