List of first African-American mayors

In the 19th century in the American South during Reconstruction, African Americans began to be elected to many local offices, such as sheriff or justice of the peace, and some became the first African-American mayors of cities and towns. After this brief period, African Americans found themselves unavailable to obtain mayoral offices due to racial discrimination. In the 1960s, they again began to be elected elected or appointed to mayoral positions following the achievements of the Civil Rights Movement and passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Voting Rights Act of 1965. Achievements in African Americans' being elected mayor in majority-European American and other municipalities made their political participation one of daily life in many localities.

1860s

• 1868

First African-American elected mayor of a U.S. town: Pierre Caliste Landry, Donaldsonville, Louisiana^[1]

1880s

• 1888

First African-American mayor of a predominately white U.S. town, and of a Western U.S. town: Edward Duplex, Wheatland, California^[2]

1960s

• 1966

First African-American mayor of a U.S. city: Robert C. Henry, Springfield, Ohio (appointed by city commission)

First African-American elected mayor of a California city: Thomas Yarborough, Lake Elsinore, California^{[citation needed]}

First African-American mayor of a city of 200,000 or more citizens: Floyd J. Mcree, Flint, Michigan (appointed by city commission)^{[citation needed]}

• 1967

First African-American elected mayor of a large U.S. city: Carl B. Stokes (Cleveland, Ohio)

First African-American elected mayor of Gary, Indiana: Richard G. Hatcher

First African-American appointed mayor of Washington, D.C.: Walter Washington (see also: 1975)

• 1968

First African-American elected mayor of a predominantly white southern city: Howard Nathaniel Lee, Chapel Hill, North Carolina^[3]

• 1969

First African-American elected mayor of a Mississippi city: Charles Evers, Fayette, Mississippi^[4]

1970s

• 1970

First African-American elected mayor of Newark, New Jersey: Kenneth A. Gibson

First African-American elected mayor of Dayton, Ohio: James H. McGee

First African American appointed mayor of Wichita, Kansas: A. Price Woodard^[5]

First African-American elected mayor of Salina, Kansas: Robert C. Caldwell^[6]

• 1971

First African-American appointed mayor of Grand Rapids, Michigan: Lyman Parks (see also: 1973)

• 1972

First African-American mayor of a state capital: James R. Ford, Tallahassee, Florida^{[citation needed]}

• 1973

First African-American elected mayor of Detroit: Coleman Young

First African-American elected mayor of Raleigh, North Carolina: Clarence Lightner

First African-American elected mayor of a major Southern city: Maynard Jackson, Atlanta, Georgia^[7]

First African-American elected mayor of a major Western city: Tom Bradley, Los Angeles, California

First African-American woman mayor of a major satellite city: Doris A. Davis, Compton, California

First African-American elected mayor of Grand Rapids, Michigan: Lyman Parks (see also: 1971)

• 1975

First African-American elected mayor, and first elected mayor, of Washington, D.C.: Walter Washington (see also: 1967)

• 1978

First African-American elected mayor of Oakland, California: Lionel J. Wilson

First African-American elected mayor of New Orleans: Ernest Nathan Morial

• 1979

First African-American elected mayor of Birmingham, Alabama: Richard Arrington, Jr.

1980s

• 1981

First African-American elected mayor of Newport, Rhode Island: Paul L. Gaines

First African-American elected mayor of Spokane, Washington: James Everett Chase

• 1983

First African-American elected mayor of Chicago: Harold Washington

First African-American elected mayor of Charlotte, North Carolina: Harvey Gantt

• 1984

First African-American elected mayor of Atlantic City, New Jersey: James Usry

First African-American elected mayor of Philadelphia: Wilson Goode

First African-American elected mayor of Portsmouth, Virginia: James W. Holley, III

• 1988

First African-American elected mayor of Baltimore: Kurt Schmoke

First African-American elected mayor of Hempstead, New York: James A. Garner

• 1989

First African-American elected mayor of New York City: David Dinkins

First African-American elected mayor of Seattle, Washington: Norm Rice

First African-American elected mayor of New Haven, Connecticut: John C. Daniels

1990s

• 1990

First African-American elected mayor of Trenton, New Jersey: Douglas Palmer

• 1991

First African-American elected mayor of Memphis, Tennessee: W.W. Herenton

First African-American elected mayor of Denver, Colorado: Wellington Webb

First African-American elected mayor of Kansas City, Missouri: Emanuel Cleaver

First African-American woman elected mayor of Washington, D.C.: Sharon Pratt Kelly

• 1993

First African-American elected mayor of St. Louis, Missouri: Freeman Bosley, Jr.

First African-American elected mayor of Dallas, Texas: Ron Kirk

First African-American elected mayor of Rochester, New York: William A. Johnson, Jr.

• 1994

First African-American and first woman elected mayor of Minneapolis, Minnesota: Sharon Sayles Belton

• 1996

First African-American elected mayor of San Francisco: Willie Brown

• 1997

First African-American elected mayor of Jackson, Mississippi: Harvey Johnson, Jr.

First African-American elected mayor of Houston, Texas: Lee P. Brown

2000s

• 2000

First African-American elected mayor of Columbus, Ohio: Michael B. Coleman

First African-American elected mayor of Selma, Alabama: James Perkins, Jr.^{[citation needed]}

• 2001

First African-American woman mayor of major Southern city, and first woman to be elected mayor of Atlanta, Georgia: Shirley Franklin^[8]

First African-American and first woman elected mayor of Southfield, Michigan: Brenda L. Lawrence

• 2002

First African-American woman elected mayor of Dayton, Ohio: Rhine McLin

• 2003

First African-American and first woman elected mayor of Greenville, Mississippi: Heather McTeer-Hudson^{[citation needed]}

First African-American elected mayor of Tallahassee, Florida: John Marks

First African-American and first woman elected mayor of Daytona Beach, Florida: Yvonne Scarlett-Golden^{[citation needed]}

• 2004

First African-American elected mayor of Baton Rouge, Louisiana: Kip Holden

First African-American mayor of Milwaukee, Wisconsin: Marvin Pratt

First African-American elected mayor of Pine Bluff, Arkansas: Carl A. Redus, Jr.^[9]

• 2005

First African-American elected mayor of Buffalo, New York: Byron Brown

First African-American elected mayor of Richmond, Virginia: Douglas Wilder

First African-American elected mayor of Mobile, Alabama: Sam Jones

First African-American elected mayor of Asheville, North Carolina: Terry Bellamy

First African-American elected mayor of Cincinnati, Ohio: Mark Mallory

First African-American elected mayor of Youngstown, Ohio: Jay Williams

• 2006

First African-American elected mayor of Shreveport, Louisiana: Cedric Glover

First African-American elected mayor of Anderson, South Carolina: Terence Roberts

• 2007

First African-American woman and first woman elected mayor of Baltimore: Sheila Dixon

First African-American elected mayor of Greensboro, North Carolina: Yvonne Johnson

First African-American elected mayor of Vallejo, California: Osby Davis^{[citation needed]}

First African-American elected mayor of Wichita, Kansas: Carl Brewer

First African-American elected mayor of South Harrison Township, New Jersey: Charles Tyson^[10]

• 2008

First African-American elected mayor of Blue Springs, Missouri: Carson Ross

First African-American elected mayor of Lancaster, Texas: Marcus Knight

First African-American elected mayor of Mansfield, Ohio: Donald Culliver

First African-American elected mayor of Sacramento, California: Kevin Johnson

First African-American mayor of Festus, Missouri: Earl Cook^[11]

• 2009

First African-American elected mayor of Philadelphia, Mississippi: James Young

First African-American elected mayor of Freeport, New York: Andrew Hardwick^[12]

First African-American and first woman elected mayor of Saratoga Springs, Utah and first African American woman elected mayor in Utah: Mia Love^[13]

References