Incumbent Jim Ross defeated Steve Cavender, Hunter Crow, and Shaun Mallory in the nonpartisan general election for mayor of Arlington, Texas, on May 2, 2026. As of March 2026, Ross and Cavender led in endorsements and local media attention.

Ross was first elected mayor in 2021, when he defeated Michael Glaspie 54.4%-45.6%. He was re-elected in 2023, defeating Amy Cearnal 51.8%-48.2%.

Ross was a former attorney and a veteran of the U.S. Marine Corps and the Arlington Police Department. Ross said he had "brought over 27,000 new jobs to Arlington...[and] increased the average wage by more than 20%" during his two terms in office. The Arlington Professional Firefighters Association and the Arlington Police Association endorsed Ross.

Cavender was a veteran of the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve and the U.S. Army Reserve. As of the 2026 election, Cavender was a real estate developer and the president of the River Legacy Foundation. Cavender said he was running because "Arlington deserves energetic, fiscally responsible leadership that puts residents and taxpayers first." Former mayors Jeff Williams and Richard Greene endorsed Cavender.

The Arlington Report's Chris Moss reported that in a press release, Cavender said "he was urged to run 'for the past couple years' by civic and community leaders and small business owners who are frustrated with budget shortfalls and rising property taxes." Moss also reported that "Ross said many of the [budget and tax] issues were caused by the Tarrant County Appraisal District’s move to freeze property appraisals."

Arlington has a council-manager government. The mayor is one of nine members of the city council and has responsibilities including presiding over council meetings and representing the city. The city council appoints a city manager to serve as chief executive. Arlington mayors are elected to three-year terms in nonpartisan elections and are subject to a three-term limit.

Arlington is the 49th most populous city in the U.S. Twenty-three of the 100 most populous cities will hold mayoral elections in 2026. Currently, 67 of those cities have Democratic mayors, 22 have Republican mayors, one has a Libertarian mayor. Three cities have independent mayors, and six have mayors who identify as nonpartisan. One mayor’s partisan affiliation is unknown.

In August 2025, a representative from Ross' office sent a statement to Ballotpedia saying that he was an independent. On March 31, 2026, a representative from Cavendar’s campaign told Ballotpedia that he is nonpartisan.