The City Council on Tuesday night rejected a proposed ordinance that would have ended the long-standing city practice of holding its elections at a separate date from county, state and national elections.
The measure sponsored by Councilwoman Demetrus Coonrod would also have set a maximum of four terms for council members.
It would not have changed the current limit of two terms for the mayor.
Councilwoman Coonrod made a motion to approve, but did not get a second.
If it had passed the City Council, it then would have had to go to the voters in 2025 to see if they would ratify it.
Under the current setup, the city has to pay the full cost of the stand-alone elections.
Councilwoman Coonrod said even if the city election is held at the same time as other voting "we would still be non-partisan."
She said it might bring out more black voters.
Of the four-term limit for the council, she earlier said the council sometimes "get stuck with people who serve 20 plus years."
Some council members earlier said they did not want elections to get tangled with partisan wrangling involved in county, state and national elections.
And if the council approved it, "We would still hear the voice of the community on it," she said.