Metro Nashville Council Member (At-Large) Bob Mendes endorsed fellow council member Freddie O’Connell as the next mayor of Nashville.
In January, The Tennessee Star reported that current Nashville Mayor John Cooper announced that he would not seek re-election, leaving the race wide open. O’Connell was one of the first to announce his candidacy for the position.
In a statement Thursday announcing his endorsement of O’Connell, Mendes (pictured above, left) said, “In these difficult times, we need someone who won’t have to learn the city government on the fly. We need someone we can trust to take a principled stand when the city is pressured by outsiders. We need someone who will keep his eye every day on making Nashville work better for Nashvillians.”
“Freddie knows that growth has to deliver for everyone in Nashville. All our neighbors deserve a city that works for them now without having to wait a generation to see a benefit,” Mendes continued. “Freddie is a listener and a doer. When he sees a problem, he jumps in to fix it. Freddie’s vision is driven by Nashville’s shared sense of community…Freddie is the right person to be Nashville’s next Mayor.”
If you’ve worked with @mendesbob, you know how thorough and thoughtful he is, including about when and how he uses his voice.
I couldn’t be more honored to have earned his support as we work toward reimagining a Nashville for Nashvillians. https://t.co/egaN6AnZ8k
— Freddie O’Connell (@freddieoconnell) April 20, 2023
On Twitter, O’Connell (pictured above, right) responded to Mendes’ endorsement, tweeting, “If you’ve worked with [Bob Mendes], you know how thorough and thoughtful he is, including about when and how he uses his voice. I couldn’t be more honored to have earned his support as we work toward reimagining a Nashville for Nashvillians.”
O’Connell has been serving on the Metro Council since 2015. Previously, he has served as president of the Salemtown Neighbors Neighborhood Association, a board member of the Nashville MTA, and a member of the Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee.
The 2023 Nashville mayoral election will be held on August 3, with a runoff on September 14, if necessary. Voter registration ends on July 5, with early voting beginning on July 14. The last day to request an absentee ballot is July 27.
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Kaitlin Housler is a reporter at The Tennessee Star and The Star News Network.
Photo “Freddie O’Connell” by Freddie O’Connell. Photo “Bob Mendes” by Bob Mendes. Background Photo “Nashville City Hall” by Luckiewiki. CC BY-SA 4.0.
