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. 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.

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.

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.

[[File:Memphis Ordinance 5823.svg|thumb|center|200x200px|Precinct results {{legend|#DEDEBD|Against}}

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{{legend|#BCBC83|60–70%}}

{{legend|#DEDEBD|50–60%}} {{legend|#808080|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.

Declared
The following 17 candidates are on the ballot:
 * Carnita Atwater, community organizer and Democratic candidate for Governor of Tennessee in 2022 (I)
 * Jennings Bernard, private probation company owner (I)
 * Floyd Bonner, Shelby County Sheriff (D)
 * Joe Brown, former host of Judge Joe Brown and former Shelby County Criminal Court judge (I)
 * Kendra Calico, hunger relief charity president (I)
 * Karen Camper, 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)
 * Paul Young, 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 councilor (R); withdrew July 27, 2023