Indya Kincannon defeats Eddie Mannis to become next Knoxville mayor

Show Caption Hide Caption Indya Kincannon is the next mayor of Knoxville Indya Kincannon speaks after winning Knoxville's mayoral election Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2019.

Indya Kincannon will be Knoxville’s next mayor.

The former Knox County School Board chairwoman outlasted local businessman Eddie Mannis after finishing runner-up in the city’s primary race in August.

“Never give up," Kincannon said Tuesday night after learning she had won. "Have a great plan and have faith in your volunteers."

Kincannon talked about the “power of asking people directly for their votes,” and letting them know you care about the issues.

"I think the biggest lesson that I’ve learned is that people don’t care where you’re from, they want to know that you’re going to work hard to represent them," she said. "I think that our campaign showed that I’m a great listener, I work hard and I’m going to continue that I did that throughout the campaign and that’s how I’m going to be as mayor, too."

Mannis, who conceded right around 9 p.m., topped Kincannon by eight points and nearly 1,500 votes during the primary in August.

Those numbers turned upside down Tuesday as more progressive voters turned out to strongly support Kincannon after previously having to choose in the primary between her and fellow Democrat Marshall Stair.

Kincannon said Tuesday night that she thinks Stair's endorsement “absolutely” helped in this race.

After conceding, Mannis said that while "this is not the outcome we were hoping for we must respect the voters’ decision. ... This is one of the greatest cities in the country and I love it with all my heart and I’ll be cheering Indya on."

Eddie Mannis conceded to Indya Kincannon Eddie Mannis conceded to Indya Kincannon in the Knoxville mayoral election on Tuesday, November 5, 2019.

Mannis said his campaign came up short in East Knoxville, and he didn't expect that. It was the missing link on the path he counted on to prevail.

Unlike Mannis, Kincannon had run for office previously and served as a Knox County School Board member from 2004 to 2014 where she was chair for three years. She worked on Rogero’s staff for a time, serving as the city director, where she acted as a liaison for the 2020 U.S. Census, among other things.

Kincannon succeeds Rogero, who served two consecutive terms and is prevented by law from running again.

The win makes Kincannon, a Democrat, the second woman to become mayor in the city’s history, following in the steps of Madeline Rogero, who offered Kincannon a job in her administration a few years ago.

“I’m going to build on her successes," Kincannon said.