Greenville City Councilman Wil Brasington announced Tuesday that he's running for mayor in 2027, becoming the first candidate to formally launch a campaign for the office. Brasington made the announcement at the Daniel Building in downtown Greenville, setting up a potential challenge to the city's longtime incumbent.
The mayor's office is currently held by Knox White, who has held the position since December 1995 and won reelection to his eighth term in 2023, according to The Post and Courier. Brasington has served on Greenville City Council since 2017, and as reported by Greenville News, his platform centers on responsible growth and public safety for the city.
Brasington said he wants Greenville to grow responsibly while preserving its character and quality of life, and he told the outlet he does not take the decision to run for office lightly. He said he has worked to make Greenville better and stronger since joining city council in 2017, and he asked voters for the opportunity to continue that work as the city's next mayor.
A Council Résumé Built on Neighborhood Advocacy
Before joining city council, Brasington served on Greenville's Planning Commission and as a commissioner of the Greenville Water System, per his campaign website, votebrasington.com. He also served as president of the Alta Vista Neighborhood Association, a background that echoes the neighborhood-focused message he ran on when he first sought office.
Brasington first won his council seat in 2017 by defeating longtime incumbent David Sudduth in the Greenville City Council District 4 Republican primary, according to the same outlet's earlier coverage. That race ended in a 59-41 percent landslide, 1,122 votes to 772, unseating a councilman who had held the District 4 seat for 11 years. Brasington and Sudduth had both campaigned that year on protecting neighborhoods from the city's explosive growth, supporting investment in affordable housing and transportation, and solving traffic problems on Woodruff Road.
Brasington ran unopposed for reelection to his council seat in November 2025, according to Greenville News's election results coverage. That same report confirmed the mayor's office would be up for reelection in 2027.
Beyond City Hall
Professionally, Brasington is the chief executive officer of the Clemson Alumni Association, overseeing its board of directors, according to his campaign site. He also currently serves as a member of the South Carolina Technology and Aviation Center's board of directors.
On the council itself, Brasington has taken visible stances on development questions. He was among the members, alongside Mayor White, who voted against a proposed rezoning of 2.92 acres at Buncombe Street and Butler Avenue in April, the Greenville Journal reported in its coverage of the city's FY27 budget workshops.
A Race Reshaped by New Election Rules
Brasington's campaign arrives as Greenville prepares for a fundamentally different kind of election. State lawmakers passed a law requiring cities with populations over 39,000 to hold nonpartisan elections beginning in 2027, and per The Post and Courier, that requirement affects just two cities in South Carolina: Greenville and Florence.
The city must now choose a new voting method from three options offered by the state, the outlet reported, though which method Greenville will select has not yet been determined. Brasington told the paper he didn't object to nonpartisan elections, saying the key will be determining how exactly the city wants this change to look at the end of the day.
