On June 22, 2026, the Charlotte City Council held a business meeting that included the appointment of a new interim mayor following the retirement of Mayor Vi Lyles, approval of a red light camera pilot program, and multiple public hearings. The meeting also featured tributes to Mayor Lyles, who received the Order of the Long Leaf Pine, and proclamations for LGBTQ Pride Month and Vitiligo Awareness Month. The council heard from over 30 public speakers on the mayoral vacancy and other issues, and ultimately appointed Robert Harrington as interim mayor after a two-ballot runoff.
Charlotte, how we win. Today you have business leaders, you have political leaders, you have educators, you have community leaders. And I would also note that you have the governor and the secretary, and again, political city and county officials, they didn't just court you, right, and recruit you and send a welcome letter. They showed up. And that's what we do here in Charlotte. We show up. We show up together. And I think that is something that's very special here in this community that we're excited to have you be a part of. Charlotte, as you heard, is one of the largest, the largest, second largest financial community, not in the in just the region, but in the country, and you heard that 3,800 of those jobs are financial jobs, which again, the most important part for us is there's a lot more room for growth here in this market. So as we close here today, we assure you that this community, this business community, is about building winning cultures of which you're a part of. Thank you.org. Can't believe you're doing this alone. I've done it before. I remember. You threw your back out. How you holding up? I'm really bored. Nothing wrong with getting help. I'm good. I did it when Felicia left. I'll figure it out. I know you will, but you don't have to do it alone. That's all I'm saying. If I promised to look into it, we'd drop it and help me build this fence. Now you need the help. It'd be a real pain sometimes. If you or a veteran you know need support, don't wait. Reach out. Find resources at VA.gov slash reach. Eyes forward, don't drive distracted. Your life sounds pretty great. Don't let a buzz ruin it. Buzz driving is drunk driving. Good evening, everyone. Good evening, everyone. You know that's X the exercise clap once. All right, we're almost ready. So thank you. Um today has been a day that I'm sure several of you probably already know about this, but it's something that I think is special when you are in the ability to be serving the community no matter when it happens to you. But today I just want to recognize that we just lost Eddie Knox, who is the mayor of Charlotte for many, many years, many more than me. And um, just to have him be a presence, um, and what he had done in our work and all of the things that were happening. You know, he and I believe Harvey Gantt was the next mayor, and then that he was still with working. He was a lawyer. He was someone that really loved this community, all of it, not just the parts that were up north, but he made it possible for many of us to do things that we didn't do. But I knew an Eddie Knox, um, I knew him when I was just a first staffer person in the city, and I wanted you to be sure to know and understand that he was the kind of person that cared deeply about our city, our state, but he carried a lot more um apologies and thoughts to NC State where he went to college. And I just think that when we have these kinds of opportunities to say something out of order, to just have a quiet moment for the plan that he is the man that he has been, the mayor that he was, and the person that can make something happen all the time. So with that, if we would just take one minute for and you know, he has a wife and children, and I want to make sure that they understand that we are standing with him and really make sure that we understand that he was a great person and did so much for our city. Thank you very much. If you will bow for just a few minutes. Well, thank you all.