The runoff election for mayor of Nashville, Tennessee, takes place September 12. Incumbent Mayor David Briley and At-large Metro Councilmember John Cooper advanced from the August 1 general election, with Cooper receiving 35 percent of the vote to Briley’s 25 percent. Early voting for the runoff runs from August 23 through September 7.

 

A mayor of Nashville’s Metro government (formed in 1963) has never lost a re-election bid. Briley was the first incumbent to not receive the highest share of the vote in a general election. Briley assumed the office upon the resignation of Mayor Megan Barry in March 2018. He won the special election on May 24, 2018, to complete Barry’s term.

 

Briley has campaigned on what he says are his progressive credentials and his accomplishments since taking office in 2018, including an affordable housing plan and a new scholarship fund. He has criticized Cooper as being conservative and for sponsoring a budget in the council that Briley says harmed the city.

 

Cooper has emphasized fiscal stewardship in his campaign, criticizing Briley’s support for funding affordable housing with municipal bonds and privatizing the city’s parking meters. He says the city needs to invest more in neighborhoods instead of downtown and has called his focus on the city’s finances effective progressivism.

 

Nashville was the 25th largest city in the U.S. as of 2013. Among the 100 largest cities, there are 62 Democratic mayors, 30 Republicans, four independents, and four nonpartisans. Briley is a Democrat. Cooper’s affiliation is unknown.