| Post: | Mayor |
| Body: | Charlotte, North Carolina |
| Incumbent: | Vi Lyles |
| Incumbentsince: | December 2017 |
| Type: | Mayor |
| Termlength: | 2 years |
| Formation: | 1853 |
| First: | William F. Davidson |
The office of the Mayor of Charlotte, North Carolina is currently held by Democrat Vi Lyles, who took office in December 2017 after defeating Republican Kenny Smith in the November election.
The office was established in 1853, when William F. Davidson was elected to serve as intendent. In 1861, the title was changed from intendent to mayor.[1] Below is a list of people who have served as the mayor of Charlotte.
Charlotte mayors serve two-year terms and elections take place in off-years. The longest-serving mayor is Pat McCrory,[2] who served from 1995 to 2009.
| Mayor | Term | Political party | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| William F. Davidson | 1853–1857 | - | ||
| David Parks | 1857–1859 | - | ||
| Jennings B. Kerr | 1859–1861 | - | ||
| William A. Owens | 1861–1862 | - | Resigned after one month in order to command a Confederate regiment. Was killed in battle in 1864. | |
| Robert F. Davidson | 1862–1863 | - | Originally Mayor Pro Tem, served the remainder of Owens' term.[3] | |
| Samuel A. Harris | 1864–1865 | - | Appointed by Provisional Governor William Woods Holden.[4] | |
| H.M. Pritchard | 1865–1866 | - | Appointed by Provisional Governor William Woods Holden.[5] | |
| Samuel A. Harris | 1866–1868 | - | Second appointment. | |
| Frederick W. Ahrens | 1867–1868 | - | Appointed by Provisional Governor William Woods Holden.[6] | |
| H.M. Pritchard | 1868–1869 | - | Second appointment. | |
| Clement Dowd | 1869–1871 | Democratic | Later became a U.S. Representative. | |
| John A. Young | 1871–1873 | - | ||
| William F. Davidson | 1873–1875 | - | ||
| William Johnston | 1875–1878 | - | ||
| Benjamin Rush Smith | 1878–1879 | - | ||
| Frank I. Osborne | 1879–1880 | Democratic | Later became a North Carolina State Senator and North Carolina Attorney General (1893–1897). | |
| Frederick S. DeWolfe | 1880–1883 | - | ||
| William C. Maxwell | 1883–1884 | - | ||
| William Johnston | 1884–1887 | - | ||
| F. Brevard McDowell | 1887–1891 | - | ||
| R.J. Brevard | 1891–1895 | - | ||
| E.B. Spring | 1897–1899 | - | ||
| Johnson D. McCall | 1899–1901 | Democratic | ||
| Peter Marshall Brown | 1901–1905 | Democratic | ||
| Samuel S. McNinch | 1905–1907 | Democratic | ||
| Thomas S. Franklin | 1907–1909 | Democratic | Secured funding for the first public library in Charlotte from the Carnegie Foundation.[7] | |
| Thomas W. Hawkins | 1909–1911 | Democratic | ||
| Charles A. Bland | 1911–1915 | Democratic | ||
| Thomas Leroy Kirkpatrick | 1915–1917 | Democratic | ||
| Frank R. McNinch | 1917–1920 | Democratic | Later became chairman of the Federal Power Commission and chairman of the Federal Communications Commission. | |
| John M. Wilson | 1920–1921 | Democratic | Became Mayor when Frank McNinch stepped down to take a job in Washington, D.C. WBT went on the air.[8] | |
| James O. Walker | 1921–1924 | Democratic | ||
| Harvey W. Moore | 1924–1926 | Democratic | ||
| David M. Abernathy | 1926–1927 | Democratic | Selected after Moore resigned to work in the private sector.[9] | |
| F. Marion Redd | 1927–1929 | Democratic | ||
| George E. Wilson, Jr. | 1929–1931 | Democratic | ||
| Charles E. Lambeth | 1931–1933 | Democratic | ||
| Arthur E. Wearn | 1933–1935 | Democratic | ||
| Ben Elbert Douglas, Sr. | 1935–1941 | Democratic | Charlotte Douglas International Airport was completed under Douglas and carries his name. | |
| E. McA. Currie | 1941–1943 | Democratic | ||
| Herbert Hill Baxter | 1943–1949 | Democratic | Charlotte College, now the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, was established[10] and fluoride was added to the water supply. | |
| Victor Shaw | 1949–1953 | Democratic | ||
| Philip Van Every | 1953–1957 | Democratic | During Van Every's administration the Charlotte Coliseum and Independence Blvd. were completed.[11] | |
| James Saxon Smith | 1957–1961 | Democratic | ||
| Stanford R. Brookshire | 1961–1969 | Democratic | Lake Norman was developed during his administration. Brookshire Freeway and Brookshire Boulevard are named in his honor.[12] | |
| John M. Belk | 1969–1977 | Democratic | The original Charlotte Convention Center was built and SouthPark Mall was developed. John Belk Freeway is named for him.[13] | |
| Kenneth R. Harris | 1977–1979 | Republican | First Republican Mayor. Liquor by the drink approved by voters.[14] Later became a North Carolina State Senator. | |
| H. Edward Knox | 1979–1983 | Democratic | Discovery Place was built. | |
| Harvey Gantt | 1983–1987 | Democratic | First African-American Mayor. The Harvey B. Gantt Center is named in his honor. | |
| Sue Myrick | 1987–1991 | Republican | First female Mayor. Second Charlotte Coliseum completed. Later became a U.S. Representative. | |
| Richard Vinroot | 1991–1995 | Republican | Bank of America Corporate Center is dedicated. | |
| Pat McCrory | 1995–2009 | Republican | Longest-serving mayor with seven terms. First Charlotte mayor to be elected Governor of North Carolina. | |
| Anthony Foxx | 2009–2013 | Democratic | Stepped down to become United States Secretary of Transportation. | |
| Patsy Kinsey | 2013 | Democratic | Served the remainder of Foxx's term.[15] | |
| Patrick Cannon | 2013–2014 | Democratic | Resigned after being arrested on corruption charges.[16] | |
| Dan Clodfelter | 2014–2015 | Democratic | Appointed mayor by the City Council on 7 April 2014.[17] | |
| Jennifer Roberts | 2015–2017 | Democratic | ||
| Vi Lyles | 2017– | Democratic | First African-American female mayor. |