2023 Nashville mayoral election

The 2023 Nashville mayoral election took place on August 3, 2023, to elect the next mayor of Nashville, Tennessee. Incumbent Democratic Mayor John Cooper did not seek re-election to a second term in office. A wide field of candidates ran to succeed Cooper, with Democratic metro councilmember Freddie O'Connell and Republican political consultant Alice Rolli advancing to the runoff because no candidate surpassed 50% of the vote. In the runoff election, Democratic candidate Freddie O'Connell was elected with 63.9% of the vote, defeating Republican Candidate Alice Rolli, becoming the 10th mayor of metro Nashville.

Freddie O'Connell was considered one of the more progressive figures in Nashville politics and is known for his vocal opposition to the use of public funds to build the Nissan Stadium. Alice Rolli is a businesswoman who has worked for numerous prominent Tennessee Republicans in the past, including governor Bill Haslam and U.S. Senator Lamar Alexander.

Rolli was considered an underdog in the runoff due to her status as a Republican in a heavily Democratic city. In the 60 years since the city of Nashville was consolidated with Davidson County in 1963, it has never elected a Republican mayor. Democrat Joe Biden won the city with 64.5% of the vote in the 2020 presidential election.

All Nashville municipal elections are required to be non-partisan, but candidates can be affiliated with a political party.

Withdrew before the filing deadline

 * Gilbert Ramirez, business owner and former police officer (running for Metro Council at-large)
 * Lorenzo Short, Jr. real estate broker

Disqualified

 * William Domann, musician
 * Zerit Teklay, author

Declined

 * Megan Barry, former mayor (2015–2018) (Party affiliation: Democratic)
 * Hal Cato, former nonprofit executive
 * John Cooper, incumbent mayor (Party affiliation: Democratic)
 * David A. Fox, candidate for mayor in 2015 (endorsed Rolli)
 * Bob Freeman, state representative for the 56th district (2018–present) (Party affiliation: Democratic) (endorsed Campbell)
 * Odessa Kelly, community activist and nominee for Tennessee's 7th congressional district in 2022 (Party affiliation: Democratic)
 * Bob Mendes, metro councilmember (endorsed O'Connell)
 * Tara Scarlett, education nonprofit CEO
 * Jim Shulman, vice mayor of Nashville (ran for re-election)
 * Carol Swain, retired Vanderbilt University professor and candidate for mayor in 2018 and 2019 (Party affiliation: Republican)

Runoff endorsements
Endorsements in bold were made after the first round.