NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — John Cooper has won the election for Nashville mayor, giving the growing southern city its third mayor in less than two years.
The metro councilman defeated incumbent Mayor David Briley in Thursday's runoff election, continuing his momentum from an Aug. 1 general election in which he outpaced Briley by about 10 percentage points. Briley conceded Thursday night.
Briley began serving as mayor in March 2018 after former Mayor Megan Barry pleaded guilty to a felony and resigned over an extramarital affair with her bodyguard. He won a special election in May 2018 to serve the rest of Barry's term.
Cooper is a real estate development and the brother of Democratic U.S. Rep. John Cooper. Briley and Cooper are Democrats in the progressive capital city of a firmly Republican state, though the mayor's race is technically nonpartisan.