Mayor-elect Paul Young shares plans for Memphis fresh off election win

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (WMC) - It’s been 24 hours since the Memphis mayoral election called for Paul Young.

We wanted to learn how he plans to work for all of the Bluff City.

“I want everything that we do to be about us,” said Memphis Mayor-Elect Paul Young. “That’s why I said there’s no more ‘Team Young.’ Now it’s ‘Team Memphis’ and that’s what we’re rocking for four to eight years.”

More than 88,000 people voted in the Memphis Municipal Election, a lower turnout compared to years past.

Young won with about 28% of the vote.

“You’re not necessarily joining ‘Team Young,’ you’re joining ‘Team Memphis,’” said Young. “Because we all want the same thing for our city. That includes those that didn’t vote for me and those who did vote for me. The votes don’t matter at this point. It’s about the citizens of our community. I want them to feel like they have someone who is willing to earn their respect and trust.”

Young says his first 100 days look like finalizing his team, preparing for budget season, and elevating the urgency around Memphis crime, including bringing city and county officials to the table.

A path to victory for Young became clear early on Election Night, and of course, Action News 5 had to ask about the moment Young came out to give his victory speech to Three 6 Mafia’s “Who Run It.”

“It was Memphis,” said Young. “It was Memphis. We went through a hard-fought campaign season. There was a lot of trash talk, and so you know that was our way of speaking back without talking trash. We just let the song talk.”

Young takes the reigns at city hall in January 2024. He has these words for Memphians:

“The vision for Memphis is to lift the cloud of darkness we’ve been feeling,” said Young. “The heaviness we’ve seen around crime and the negative things we’ve seen in the news. We want to lean into the things that make us great. More than anything, I want Memphians to feel hopeful about the future.”

Our Joe Birch also interviewed then-candidate Paul Young, you can find that interview in its entirety here.

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