A 2020 open letter signed by more than 100 leaders of local nonprofits has become a flashpoint in the most expensive race for a city council seat on the Oct. 5 ballot.

Former Mayor Willie Herenton talks on “Behind The Headlines” about his bid to return as mayor, a recent discussion he had with millennials and his leadership of MPD.

About 23% of voters remained undecided, indicating that the crowded 17-person field remains very much up in the air. 

Here is everything you need to know about early voting in the Memphis elections and links to the ballot as well as a locator to figure out what council districts you live in.

Early voting begins Friday, Sept. 15, with a large field of 17 mayoral candidates.

Related story:

Ballot Basics: Early voting is Sept. 15-30

Six candidates were asked how they would allocate $350 million in state cash between Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium and FedExForum. 

“Memphis is at a critical juncture. We cannot afford to continue the stagnation. We cannot continue allowing crime, poverty and low educational achievement to define this city.”

Two of the three positions in City Council Super District 9 have incumbents facing one challenger each. 

City Council Super District 8 covers half of the city’s population. All three Super District seats are on the October Memphis ballot, and two of the races are contested in the upcoming city elections.

Four years after upsetting incumbent council member Berlin Boyd, Michalyn Easter-Thomas faces six challengers for the District 7 council seat. If the recent past is any indication, it could be bound for a November runoff.

The candidates were allowed to ask each other questions, confronting one another on their pasts and records.

This roundup looks at the latest report on voter registration, checks in with Election Commission officials ahead of Friday’s opening of early voting in Memphis and replays the Republican debate that ended with no school-board primaries.

Council District 5 is one of five seats on the council with no incumbent seeking reelection. Two of the three contenders have raised more money than any other council candidate.

With less than a week before early voting begins in the 2023 Memphis elections, a reporters roundtable on “Behind The Headlines” looks at what is at stake.

One is a current City Councilwoman, and the other served on the council briefly. 

Five people are competing for the City Council District 3 seat being vacated by term-limited incumbent Patrice Robinson.

The decision came during a secret-ballot vote of the local Republican Party’s executive committee Thursday, Sept. 7, in Germantown. 

Six candidates in the Memphis City Council District 2 race cite crime as prevailing issue, but they also have concerns about economic vitality and blight.

Rhonda Logan, who is running for re-election in District 1 against challenger Kymberly Kelley, cites public safety and economic opportunity as top issues. 

Memphis was the third of three stops Tuesday, Sept. 5, kicking off what Johnson says will be an “uphill battle” to win the August primary and take down Marsha Blackburn in next year’s November general election.

The coalition argues a wave in the 2022 countywide elections can be repeated despite city elections being nonpartisan. Meanwhile, the local Republican party has endorsed Sheriff Floyd Bonner Jr. 

These other 10 contenders are on the October ballot for Memphis mayor.

Young thinks he is more prepared to hold the office than any other new mayor in the city’s history. 

The life of the attorney and former Shelby County commissioner has taken him to Atlanta, Knoxville, D.C. and Japan. He returned to Memphis more than 20 years ago and found a path to elected office.

Michelle McKissack, who hopes to become the first woman to be mayor of Memphis, remembers growing up in a city where crime was not a constant concern.