Madeline Rogero

2011 mayoral campaign

Haslam was reelected mayor in 2007 (Rogero didn't run), and resigned the office in January 2011 after he was elected governor of the state. Councilman Daniel Brown was appointed interim mayor. Rogero announced her candidacy for mayor in August 2010, joining a field that eventually included councilwoman Marilyn Roddy, former councilman Ivan Harmon, businessman Mark Padgett, former councilman Joe Hultquist, and local 911 operator Bo Bennett. Roddy dropped out in April 2011 to run for the district's state senate seat, leaving Rogero as the front runner in the nonpartisan mayoral election.

By July 2011, Rogero had managed to raise $160,000, and by September she had raised over $345,000. Her candidacy was endorsed by the Knoxville News Sentinel, Knoxville's daily newspaper; the alternative weekly Metro Pulse; the Public Trust PAC, a nonpartisan political action committee in Knox County that was established after a series of 2007 scandals involving county government; former State Senator Ben Atchley; former Knox County Executive Tommy Schumpert; several key members of the city staff under former mayor Haslam; and the Knoxville Firefighters Association. By the day of the primary election, she counted a total of "more than two dozen" endorsements from current or past elected officials in the Knoxville and Knox County governments.

In the primary election on September 27, 2011 Rogero won 49.91% of the vote, ahead of the second and third-place finishers, Mark Padgett (22.64%) and Ivan Harmon (22.32%), but 16 votes short of the 50% threshold needed to avoid a runoff.

Rogero faced fellow Democrat Padgett, the second-place finisher, in a runoff election that was held on November 8, 2011. During the weeks following the primary, Rogero picked up an endorsement from the local chapter of the Fraternal Order of Police, Rogero won the runoff with 58.6% of the vote. Rogero's election made her the first woman mayor of Knoxville.

Mayoral term

Rogero was sworn in as mayor on December 17, 2011, in a ceremony at Chilhowee Park. The Knoxville City Council voted to put the new hybrid plan on the November 2012 ballot and voters approved it with 76 percent voting in favor. The new plan does not interfere with benefits of existing employees but does impact all city employees hired after Jan. 1, 2013.

Her administration also saw the development of the Office of Business Support, which was designed to help local businesses in their dealings with the City of Knoxville government, and the development of new enforcement tools to deal with chronically neglected and blighted properties. City Council approved four ordinances to help address the issue. Rogero included both initiatives in a Year-End Review that looked at her first year in office.

On November 1, 2013, Rogero was selected as one of 26 governmental leaders to serve on a task force that advised former President Barack Obama on climate preparedness and resilience-building efforts. In late January 2014, Rogero visited Turkey at the invitation of the U.S. State Department to talk about the importance of women participating in politics and public life.

In 2015, Rogero was reelected with 98.78%, facing only a single write-in opponent.

Political positions Rogero's administration has a four-level platform: Strong, safe neighborhoods; Living Green and Working Green; An energized downtown; and Job creation and retention. Her first budget included initiatives in each of these areas.

During her 2011 campaign, Rogero stated she would only consider raising taxes after "all attempts were exhausted to cut expenses to provide needed services."

She also expressed her support for the proposed Hillside and Ridgetop Protection Plan, which would place restrictions on development along the slopes of area hills and ridges. Supporters of the plan had said it was necessary to preserve the area's scenic beauty and protect neighborhoods and waterways from runoff. Opponents argued that it was too restrictive, and would harm area economic development.