LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Democrat Craig Greenberg has defeated Republican Bill Dieruf in the race to be the Louisville Metro’s new mayor in 2023.

The businessman bested Republican and Jeffersontown Mayor Bill Dieruf after clawing through a crowded Democratic primary. Louisville hasn’t elected a Republican mayor since 1969.

Greenberg went to Harvard Business School and helped found the 21C Museum Hotel chain, which he says helped put Louisville on the map. He also co-owns the OVW Wrestling Circuit.

Louisville’s new mayor will take the helm in early Jan. 2023.

In a sit-down interview with Spectrum News 1, Greenberg said the biggest challenge facing the city is public safety.

“We must improve public safety, to make it a safer city for all of our residents, for everyone that’s visiting here and there’s so much that we can and must do,” he said.

When it comes to public safety, Greenberg’s “All In” plan calls for fully staffing and funding a “community-oriented police force” and addressing the root causes of crime.

Greenberg’s campaign was thrust into the local and national spotlight in Feb. 2022 when a man entered his campaign headquarters, firing multiple rounds at the then-candidate and his staff. No one was hit, but a bullet grazed Greenberg’s sweater.

Quintez Brown, a 22-year-old activist, faces charges of “interfering with a federally protected right, and using and discharging a firearm in relation to a crime of violence by shooting at and attempting to kill a candidate for elective office” for the attempted shooting. Brown also searched for details on Dieruf in the days before the shooting, police records show.

The 49-year-old Greenberg takes over for Greg Fischer, who was term limited after first being elected in 2011.