2021 Durham mayoral election

The 2021 Durham, North Carolina mayoral election was held on November 2, 2021, to elect the next mayor of Durham, North Carolina.

Mayor Steve Schewel was elected with 59.5% of the vote in 2017, and was reelected with 83.4% in 2019. On May 27, 2021, he announced that he would not seek a third term. Seven candidates filed to run in this election to succeed Schewel as mayor.

Schewel endorsed city council member Javiera Caballero to be his successor. Durham's longest-serving mayor, Bill Bell, endorsed former superior court judge Elaine O'Neal. Caballero and O'Neal were considered the two frontrunners in the election.

A nonpartisan blanket primary was held on October 5, 2021. The top two candidates from the primary, Elaine O'Neal and Javiera Caballero, advanced to the general election ballot. O'Neal garnered 84.6% of the vote in the general election, thus becoming mayor.

Declared

 * Rebecca Barnes
 * Javiera Caballero, member of the Durham City Council since 2018
 * Bree Davis, research coordinator at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
 * Jahnmaud Lane
 * Elaine O'Neal, former superior court judge and former interim dean at the North Carolina Central University School of Law
 * Daryl Quick

Withdrew

 * Charlitta Burruss, advocate and candidate for city council in 2019 (remained on ballot)

Declined

 * Steve Schewel, mayor since 2017