It’s an election year in Cleveland. The primary is Sept. 9 and the races for mayor and city council will be held on Nov. 4 general election.
Here's everything you need to know:
What will Cleveland residents vote on?
The mayor and all members of Cleveland City Council are on the ballot this year.
All residents can cast a ballot for their mayoral choice, but each will also select a councilperson for their ward. Residents will not be eligible to vote in a ward that is not their own.
Ward boundaries are changing for the first time in a decade, per the city charter. To accommodate for population loss, Cleveland will lose two of its 17 wards. That means only 15 council people will be elected and take office in January 2026.
To see which future ward your address will fall in, visit the Cleveland City Council website here.
Who’s running?
The filing deadline for the Sept. 9 primary isn't until June 11, so not all candidates have announced yet.
Incumbent Mayor Justin Bibb is campaigning to retain his seat. With more than $600,000 in his war chest, and the most political capital of any competitors who have filed with the Board of Elections, he is likely to sail to a smooth victory.
City Council President Blaine Griffin has been rumored to run for mayor, although he has not yet announced and has already pulled petitions to defend his current Ward 6 seat. He would be ineligible to run for both.
More than 30 people have filed to fill City Council's 15 seats. The incumbents running for re-election include:
- Joe Jones (Ward 1)
- Kevin Bishop (Ward 2)
- Deborah Gray (Ward 3)
- Kris Harsh (Ward 4)
- Rebecca Maurer and Richard Starr (Ward 5),
- Blaine Griffin (Ward 6)
- Stephanie Howse-Jones (Ward 8)
- Kevin Conwell (Ward 9)
- Mike Polensek (Ward 10)
- Danny Kelly (Ward 12)
- Brian Kazy (Ward 13)
- Jasmin Santana (Ward 14)
- Charles Slife (Ward 15)
Seven of those races currently have competitors seeking to oust those incumbents.
Council members Jenny Spencer and Kerry McCormack have said they do not plan to seek re-election, leaving the fields wide open for new Wards 7 and 11.
When do I vote?
There are two key election dates for mayor and City Council candidates.
First is the Sept. 9 primary, in which residents will narrow each race down to two of the candidates per race. The filing deadline for that race is June 11, giving candidates the summer to campaign to voters.
The next is the Nov. 4 general election, which will determine the winners of those races. They will assume office in January 2026.
