Leslie B. McLemore

Leslie-Burl McLemore (born August 17, 1940) is an American civil rights activist and political leader from Walls, Mississippi. He served as interim mayor of Jackson following the death of Frank Melton on May 7, 2009 until the inauguration of re-elected mayor Harvey Johnson, Jr. on July 3, 2009.

Early life Leslie-Burl McLemore was born in Walls, Mississippi on August 17, 1940, the son of a sharecropper. He was raised by his mother and his maternal grandfather, Leslie Williams, He attended Delta Center High School, where he first became involved in political action by participating in a boycott during his senior year because the school did not have any black history books in the library.

In September 1960, McLemore began studies at Rust College for social science and economics on full scholarship. Later, he would focus his political science research on the MFDP, the first to formally research the impact of a local political movement. In 2023, McLemore's efforts were honored when the Mississippi Historical Society awarded him its 2023 Lifetime Achievement Award for his accomplishments with the MFDP.

Family McLemore is married to his wife, Attorney Betty Mallett. He has one son, Leslie McLemore II, who is a practicing attorney and writer in Washington DC and is married to Jacinta W. McLemore. He has two grandchildren: Harper and Harlow.