The 2023 St. Louis aldermanic elections were held in two rounds, with nonpartisan blanketapproval voting primaries on March 7 and general elections on April 4. All 14 members of the St. Louis Board of Aldermen and the President of the Board of Aldermen were elected. These were the first elections held after Proposition R (2012) came into effect, reducing the number of alderpersons from 28 to 14.
Numerous incumbent alderpersons ran in the newly-drawn 14 wards.[a] Some local media outlets used the term "Aldergeddon" in reference to the competitive nature of several incumbents running against each other.[2] Winning candidates in even-numbered wards were elected to four-year terms and winning candidates in odd-numbered wards were elected to two-year terms.[3]
Incumbent Board President Megan Green, a progressive who was first elected in a 2022 special election after the resignation of Lewis Reed, was re-elected to a full four-year term unopposed. Progressive candidates ideologically affiliated with Green and Mayor Tishaura Jones won a majority of seats on the Board.[4]
Located on the southern extreme of the city limits, the 1st ward partially or entirely covers the neighborhoods of Patch, Boulevard Heights, Carondelet, and Bevo Mill.[12] Since 2021, this area had been represented by 13th ward Alderwoman Anne Schweitzer, who defeated incumbent Beth Murphy.[13]
Located in the city's southwest corner, the 2nd ward partially or entirely covers the neighborhoods of Boulevard Heights, Princeton Heights, and St. Louis Hills.[12] Two incumbents represented areas of the new ward: Carol Howard (14th), Tom Oldenburg (16th).[20] Only Oldenburg filed to run in the new 2nd ward.[7]
The 3rd ward is located in the southeast of the city, anchored in the Dutchtown neighborhood.[12] Incumbent 25th ward alderman Shane Cohn was the only candidate in this ward.[7]
The 4th ward is located on the city's western edge, south of Forest Park and extending through the Hi-Pointe, Ellendale, and Lindenwood Park neighborhoods, including the area known as Dogtown.[12] Incumbent aldermen Bret Narayan (24th) and Joe Vaccaro (23rd) both ran in this ward.[7]
The 5th ward covers The Hill, Southwest Garden, and North Hampton neighborhoods.[12] Incumbent 10th ward alderman and former interim Board President Joe Vollmer ran in this ward.[7]
The south-central 6th ward is anchored around Tower Grove Park, covering the Shaw, Tower Grove South, and Compton Heights neighborhoods.[12] Annie Rice, who represented the 8th ward in Shaw, declined to run in this district.[7] The 15th ward, centered on Tower Grove South, was Board President Megan Green's former seat.
The 7th ward covers Tower Grove East, Benton Park West, and the Gate District neighborhoods.[12] The seat was open, as 6th ward Christine Ingrassia resigned in February 2023 to accept a position in Board President Megan Green's office.[27] She had previously announced that she would not run for re-election.[20][7]
The 9th ward is located in the city's central corridor, east and southeast of Forest Park and covering the populous Central West End and Forest Park Southeast, the latter of which includes the Grove.[12] Two incumbents ran in this ward: Tina "Sweet-T" Pihl (17th) and Michael J. Gras (28th).[7]
In the initial unofficial results, incumbent alderpersons Tina Pihl and Mike Gras both received 868 votes, making it unclear who would advance to the general election against Michael Browning, who came in first. After absentee and provisional ballots were counted, Pihl surpassed Gras by 8 votes.[33]
The 10th ward is located on the city's western central edge, including Forest Park and the neighborhoods of Skinker-DeBaliviere and West End.[12] Incumbent 26th ward alderwoman Shameem Clark Hubbard ran for re-election in this ward.[7]
The 11th ward runs from central north city (including O'Fallon and JeffVanderLou) down to Midtown in the central corridor.[12] Incumbent 21st ward alderwoman Laura Keys, who was elected in a 2022 special election after the resignation of John Collins-Muhammad, ran for re-election in this ward.[7]
The 12th ward covers a broad area of north city, including the neighborhoods of Penrose and The Ville.[12] There are five active candidates running in this ward, the most in this cycle. Incumbent alderwoman Sharon Tyus (1st) ran for re-election in this ward, despite previously speculating that she "might" challenge Megan Green for Board President.[8]
The 13th ward covers the northern extreme of the city limits, including the neighborhoods Baden, Riverfront, and North Riverfront. It is the largest of the 14 wards by area.[12] Three incumbents ran for re-election in this ward: Pamela Boyd (27th), Lisa Middlebrook (2nd), and Norma Walker (22nd).[7] It is the only election this cycle in which all candidates are incumbents.
^18 of the 27 incumbents filed to run for re-election. Two seats (wards 6 and 15) were vacant. Another incumbent, Dwinderlin Evans, failed to qualify for the primary ballot and withdrew from the 12th ward election early on.[1] Four incumbents were eliminated in the March 7 primaries:
Brandon Bosley (3rd) ran in the 14th ward
Mike Gras (28th) ran in the 9th ward
Lisa Middlebrook (2nd) ran in the 3th ward
James Page (4th) ran in the 14th ward
Two incumbents were defeated by fellow incumbents in the April 4 general election:
Joe Vaccaro (23rd), defeated by Bret Narayan (24th) in the 4th ward
Norma Walker (22nd), defeated by Pamela Boyd (27th) in the 13th ward
One incumbent, Tina Pihl (17th), was defeated by a non-incumbent candidate (Michael Browning) in the 9th ward. Overall, 10 of the 18 incumbent candidates were re-elected to the Board.
