All Charleston municipal elections are required to be non-partisan, but most candidates can be affiliated with political parties. Charleston uses a two-round system, where election runoffs are held if no candidate obtains the majority of the vote.
The 2019 Charleston mayoral election took place on November 5, 2019, to elect the mayor of Charleston, South Carolina. Incumbent Democratic Mayor John Tecklenburg ran for re-election to a second consecutive term. A runoff was held on November 29, 2019, since no candidate surpassed 50%. In the runoff, John Tecklenburg was easily re-elected.[1]
The 2023 Charleston mayoral election took place on November 7, 2023, to elect the mayor of Charleston, South Carolina. Incumbent Democratic Mayor John Tecklenburg ran for re-election to a third consecutive term. A runoff was held on November 23, 2023, since no candidate surpassed 50%. In the runoff RepublicanWilliam Cogswell defeated Democratic Mayor John Tecklenburg. Cogswell became the first Republican mayor of Charleston since reconstruction when George Cunningham left office in 1877. Tecklenburg became the first mayor of Charleston to lose a re-election since 1959.[4][5][6]
The election was officially non-partisan, but several candidates were affiliated with political parties.
