The mayoral election is one of the most high-profile contests in town. I started writing about the county mayor's 2026 race back in January 2024. It's been a lot of fun, and hopefully coverage about race kept you informed through the twists and turns.
Why would I pump the breaks now?
In 379 days, Knoxville voters pick a replacement for term-limited Mayor Indya Kincannon. No one has announced their candidacy or filed paperwork for a run, but speculation is heating up.
It's relatively late: Last time there was an open seat for city mayor – the August 2019 primary election – Knox News reported Kincannon and Eddie Mannis filed paperwork to run in July 2018.
Why haven't people announced campaigns? We can't know for sure what the holdup is for prospective
candidates, but here are some considerations they may be dealing with:
- Being mayor is a full-time job in Knoxville. If candidates are in existing positions, they would have to vacate them.
- There are challenges at the Knoxville Police Department. KPD Chief Paul Noel is respected for the job he's done since Kincannon appointed him in 2022, but he was suspended for inappropriately texting a subordinate. It's possible candidates didn't think they would need to consider whether to keep Noel or bring on someone new. With news of Noel's indiscretions breaking Aug. 6, that calculation could change.
- To be mayor, you have to run for mayor, and that takes time. The job application to be mayor is a little more, shall we say, strenuous than most other jobs. Running a campaign is expensive and exposes a candidate and those close to them to a level of scrutiny that private citizens don't need to face.
- Who will go first? Candidates may be waiting to see who their competition will be. The more candidates who enter the race, the less predictable the results will be. If like-minded candidates step forward, they could split votes.
While we wait for candidates to file paperwork, I've done some digging to get you familiar with names you may start to hear soon.
How I came up with my list: I spoke to 16 Knoxville political experts, from current and former councilmembers to campaign operatives to neighbors who actively participate in local politics. Of everyone they mentioned, these names kept coming up.
Nobody on this list told me they aren't running for mayor, but few people didn't return my calls. Others were surprised to hear other people were floating their names.
The list isn't exhaustive: In every election, someone jumps in and surprises everyone who thought they knew what was happening.
It's too soon to say for sure who's running for Knoxville mayor, but ...
Here are the names that have come up:
The alumni
Former Knoxville councilmembers
- Gwen McKenzie: consultant, former Oak Street Health executive
- Lauren Rider: Pellissippi State Community College librarian
- Andrew Roberto: personal injury attorney
Current councilmembers
- Karyn Adams: Knoxville councilmember
- Lynne Fugate: CEO of the Girl Scout Council of the Southern Appalachians
- Amelia Parker: Peace Brigades International USA executive director
The wild cards
- Beau Hawk: ironworker, president of the Knoxville-Oak Ridge Central Labor Council, 2026 Democratic nominee for Knox County mayor
- Gloria Johnson: Tennessee state representative, former educator
- Grant Rosenberg: Knoxville chief operating officer, 2020 Republican nominee for Knox County Commission District 2
The business leaders
- Christi Branscom: principal, Partners Development general counsel and managing broker, Grace Construction owner, former Tennessee Department of General Services Commissioner, former Knoxville deputy mayor and chief operating officer
- Courtney Piper: Piper Communications president, Tennessee Advanced Energy Business Council executive director
- Jeff Talman: mortgage broker, 2023 Knoxville mayor candidate, 2025 District 4 Knoxville City Council candidate
Second time's the charm?
Prospective candidates who considered a run for city mayor in 2022:
- Keith Lyon: former president of the Fraternal Order of Police
- George Ewart: architect at GAE Architecture, Dead End BBQ partner
Who's NOT running for Knoxville mayor in 2027?
Two potential candidates whose names I kept hearing explicitly told me they are not running for mayor in 2027, citing timing in their personal lives:
- Knox County Commissioner Courtney Durrett
- Former Knoxville Councilmember Tommy Smith
Knoxville City Council has a busy meeting coming up
Ballot referendum for city elections
Councilmembers will discuss two different changes to how the city runs its elections. They'll vote whether to put one or both of the proposals on voters' November ballots.
If voters choose one of the changes, it'll go into effect for the 2027 election.
- Change one: Currently, if a candidate in the August primary gets a majority (50% +1) of votes, the top two vote-getters must run in the general election. Vice-Mayor Lynne Fugate and Councilmembers Karyn Adams, Matthew DeBardelaben, Debbie Helsley, Nathan Honeycutt and Charles Thomas want to change the rules so if a candidate gets a majority in the primary, they don't need to run in the general election). Those rules are currently in place for the mayor and municipal judge elections, but not city council.
- Change two: Currently, if there is a tie in a city council primary election, sitting councilmembers must vote to break it. They legally have the option to call a runoff tie-breaker vote before the general election, but "the election calendar does not allow enough time for a runoff before the regular election," according to council agenda material. Councilmember Amelia Parker wants to change the rules so if there is a tie in the primary, the two tied candidates will go to the general election and the city council will not have to choose one.
New workforce housing could get a boost from the city
Councilmembers will vote on a payment in lieu of taxes deal for Pennsylvania developers who want to build about 300 apartments near Covenant Health Park. David Pina, the Tennessee development manager for developer Alpha Residential, hopes the approval is a first step in the company's plans to build multiple parcels around the downtown stadium. Future projects, he told Knox News, are in the concept phase.
PILOTs freeze a property's tax value for a set period. Developers pay that amount each year until the agreement expires and regular taxes resume at the higher assessed value created by the project. Alpha Residential will keep 10% of the apartments classified as workforce housing for middle-incomes residents in exchange for the tax break.
When's the meeting? The council will meet at 6 p.m. Aug. 18 in the main assembly room of the City-County Building, 400 Main St.
Study up: Check out the agenda materials councilmembers will review at knoxvilletn.gov/city_council. Click the "agendas" link, then the "HTML Packet" option for the council meetings.
Want to weigh in? Sign up to speak during the Knoxville City Council meeting by emailing cityrecorder@knoxvilletn.gov or by calling 865-215-2075. The deadline to sign up is 4 p.m. Aug. 17.
You can still share your thoughts about stormwater management
Knoxville officials are hosting meetings to share updates on the stormwater system analysis city crews are conducting and to hear from property owners about their flooding experiences.
Recent flash floods revealed problems: "City rain gauges have recorded instances where more than an inch of rain deluges Knoxville in just 15 minutes," a city press release says. "As the storms roll through, that rainfall amount multiples. Localized flash flooding occurs."
There were two meetings last week, and there are two this week:
- 6-8 p.m. Aug. 17 at Christenberry Community Center, 931 Oglewood Ave.
- 6-8 p.m. Aug. 20 at Deane Hill Recreation Center, 7414 Deane Hill Drive
5 things you may have missed
Here are five news highlights from last week:
Sophia Tiedge and I reported that after pushback and confusion, Knox County paused work on its new zoning plan
I exclusively reported KPD Chief Paul Noel's suspension spurred a fired KPD cop to seek reinstatement
Tyler Whetstone exclusively reported Knoxville Police Chief Paul Noel's chats about coworkers raise an issue separate from his flirty texts
Sophia Tiedge reported Knoxville's One-way plan worries Union Avenue business owners, who want a full traffic study
And she followed it up with a report saying the city will continue soliciting feedback on its plan
Allie Feinberg is the politics reporter for Knox News. Email: allie.feinberg@knoxnews.com; Reddit: u/KnoxNewsAllie
This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: It's too soon to say who's running for Knoxville mayor in 2027, but ...
