As Ballotpedia prepares for August’s mayoral elections, we wanted to pause and take a look at some trends we’ve noticed across the top 100 largest cities by population. Analyzing each city’s most recent mayoral election results, ranging from 2019 to 2023, we found that the top five competitive general elections were decided by fewer than 1,000 votes, with Aurora, Colorado, being the most competitive with 214 votes separating first and second place. Here were the four other most competitive elections: Greensboro, North Carolina (425); Arlington, Texas (646); Oakland, California (677); and Austin, Texas (886).
Primary elections were even more competitive. The four most competitive were also decided by fewer than 1,000 votes, with the Green Party primary in Tucson, Arizona, being decided by 29 votes. Here were the three other most competitive mayoral primaries: nonpartisan primary in Gilbert, Arizona (166); nonpartisan primary in Scottsdale, Arizona (226); and Republican primary in Baltimore, Maryland (562).
