Allen Joines Bio

James Allen Joines received his Bachelor of Science Degree in Political Science from Appalachian State University, his Master’s in Public Administration from the University of Georgia, and an Honorary Doctor of Law from Wake Forest University.

Allen Joines was elected Mayor of the City of Winston-Salem in November 2001. He was re elected in 2005, 2009, 2013, 2016, and again in 2020.  He is the longest-serving Mayor in the history of the City.

As Mayor, he has concentrated on rebuilding the economy and unifying the community.  During Mayor Joines’ terms in office, over 26,000 jobs have been created through the recruitment of 65 new or expanded companies. He continues to work to create additional jobs thru recruitment, expansion of existing companies, and new business start-ups.  His goal is for Winston-Salem to be one of the top 50 metro areas in the country and be recognized as a city that embraces innovation and rapid change.

He led the implementation of the Ten-Year Plan to End Chronic Homelessness Commission in 2006; and as a result of this work, it has been reduced by over 85%. Winston-Salem is one of the first 27 cities across the United States that ended homelessness among veterans. In March 2012, Mayor Joines launched his Childhood Obesity Prevention Initiative to help educate children seven to ten years of age, and their parents, about the importance of good nutrition and exercise.  He formed an initiative to work on reducing poverty in Winston-Salem and is making the implementation of the Poverty Reduction Plan one of his top priorities. As part of this initiative, he developed and raised private funds to start a free college program for low-income high school students as well as a paid internship program for 11th and 12th grade students from disadvantaged families.

Mayor Joines has consistently been named one of the “Most Influential” people in the Triad. In 2013, the Winston-Salem Journal named him one of the fifty individuals who helped shape Winston-Salem in its first one hundred years.

Mayor Joines has received numerous awards including the annual Lash Southern Award in recognition of his work to rebuild the community of Winston-Salem and to unify the community around an agenda of economic development, affordable housing, safe neighborhoods; and for taking the lead in addressing such difficult social issues as homelessness and poverty. Other awards include the Winston-Salem Foundation Award, The Chronicle’s “Man of the Year,” the Boy Scouts Lifetime Achievement Award, and many others. In 2018, Fitness Revolution Magazine selected him as one of the 10 Fittest Mayors in the country.