Leonardo Williams
Leonardo Williams is the Mayor of Durham in North Carolina. He assumed office on December 4, 2023. His current term ends in 2027.
Williams ran for re-election for Mayor of Durham in North Carolina. He won in the general election on November 4, 2025.
Mayoral elections in Durham are nonpartisan. Williams is affiliated with the Democratic Party.[1][2]
Biography
Leonardo Williams received a bachelor's degree in music education and a master's degree in education leadership from North Carolina Central University. His career experience includes working as a teacher, school administrator, educational nonprofit leader, consultant, and small business owner.[3][4][5]
Elections
2025
See also: Mayoral election in Durham, North Carolina (2025)
General election
General election for Mayor of Durham
Incumbent Leonardo Williams defeated Anjanee Bell in the general election for Mayor of Durham on November 4, 2025.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Leonardo Williams (Nonpartisan) | 57.6 | 26,376 |
 | Anjanee Bell (Nonpartisan) | 42.0 | 19,263 | |
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.4 | 187 | ||
| Total votes: 45,826 | |||
 = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Nonpartisan primary election
Nonpartisan primary for Mayor of Durham
Incumbent Leonardo Williams and Anjanee Bell defeated Pablo Friedmann, Lloyd Phillips, and Rafiq Zaidi in the primary for Mayor of Durham on October 7, 2025.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Leonardo Williams (Nonpartisan) | 55.3 | 13,924 |
| ✔ | | Anjanee Bell (Nonpartisan) | 29.8 | 7,492 |
 | Pablo Friedmann (Nonpartisan) | 12.3 | 3,099 | |
| Lloyd Phillips (Nonpartisan) | 1.3 | 329 | ||
| Rafiq Zaidi (Nonpartisan) | 1.2 | 313 | ||
| Total votes: 25,157 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Angela Reddick (Nonpartisan)
Endorsements
2023
See also: Mayoral election in Durham, North Carolina (2023)
General election
General election for Mayor of Durham
Leonardo Williams defeated Mike Woodard in the general election for Mayor of Durham on November 7, 2023.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Leonardo Williams (Nonpartisan) | 63.5 | 24,366 |
 | Mike Woodard (Nonpartisan) | 36.2 | 13,899 | |
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.3 | 132 | ||
| Total votes: 38,397 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Nonpartisan primary election
Nonpartisan primary for Mayor of Durham
The following candidates ran in the primary for Mayor of Durham on October 10, 2023.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Leonardo Williams (Nonpartisan) | 51.2 | 12,206 |
| ✔ | | Mike Woodard (Nonpartisan) | 29.0 | 6,902 |
 | DeDreana Freeman (Nonpartisan) | 14.2 | 3,381 | |
| Marshall Williams, Jr (Nonpartisan) | 2.1 | 502 | ||
 | Sylvester Williams (Nonpartisan) | 1.5 | 348 | |
| Charlitta Burruss (Nonpartisan) | 0.9 | 225 | ||
| Nick Pettiford (Nonpartisan) | 0.8 | 202 | ||
| Jontae Dunston (Nonpartisan) | 0.3 | 66 | ||
| Total votes: 23,832 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Endorsements
Williams received the following endorsements.
2021
See also: City elections in Durham, North Carolina (2021)
General election
General election for Durham City Council Ward 3
Leonardo Williams defeated AJ Williams in the general election for Durham City Council Ward 3 on November 2, 2021.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Leonardo Williams (Nonpartisan) | 50.9 | 15,122 |
 | AJ Williams (Nonpartisan) | 48.9 | 14,529 | |
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.3 | 79 | ||
| Total votes: 29,730 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Nonpartisan primary election
The primary election was canceled. Leonardo Williams and AJ Williams advanced from the primary for Durham City Council Ward 3.
Campaign themes
2025
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Leonardo Williams did not complete Ballotpedia's 2025 Candidate Connection survey.
2023
Leonardo Williams did not complete Ballotpedia's 2023 Candidate Connection survey.
2021
Leonardo Williams did not complete Ballotpedia's 2021 Candidate Connection survey.
See also
2025 Elections
External links
|
Candidate Mayor of Durham |
Officeholder Mayor of Durham |
Personal |
Footnotes
- ↑ The News & Observer, "Inside the Durham mayor’s race: When the most experienced candidate is the underdog," updated November 7, 2023
- ↑ INDY Week, "Durham Mayor: Leonardo Williams," September 19, 2023
- ↑ City of Durham, "Leonardo Williams," accessed December 2, 2023
- ↑ LinkedIn, "Leonardo Williams," accessed December 2, 2023
- ↑ Leonardo Williams 2023 campaign website, "Meet Leo," accessed December 2, 2023
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by - |
Mayor of Durham 2023-Present |
Succeeded by - |
| Preceded by Pierce Freelon |
Durham City Council Ward 3 2021-2023 |
Succeeded by Chelsea Cook |
| |||||||||
