This story was originally published by Outlier Media.
Nine people are running to become Detroit’s next mayor — the first new person to hold the office in over a decade.
Now comes the hard part: getting your vote.
We’ve put together a short dispatch to let you know what you can expect from Outlier Media’s election coverage in the coming months. And we want to hear from you: What issues do you want the candidates to address? Reach out to me at briana@outliermedia.org.
In the meantime, here’s a brief introduction to the people who want to run Detroit. All but one candidate — Solomon Kinloch — have previously run for office, both successfully and unsuccessfully.
The candidates talked about being transparent, making Detroiters feel safer, improving our transit system and making sure Detroiters can afford to live here. Want to hear more directly from the candidates? Keep an eye on Outlier’s Instagram, TikTok and YouTube — where we’ll share videos of them speaking on key issues.
Responses have been edited for length and clarity.
Jonathan Barlow
Age: 40
Where did you grow up?
All over Detroit and Downriver.
Where do you live now?
Southwest Detroit.
What is your current occupation?
Founder of Let’s Talk Roundtable.
Has anyone in your family ever run for office?
Barlow’s father had a seat on the Ecorse public school board, and his mother ran for Ecorse City Council.
What do you think is the most pressing issue facing Detroit, and what would you do about it as mayor?
“They’re not reaching every family. It’s that simple, and that’s because of the leadership across the board not really having designed atmospheres for conversation to collaboration. And so that’s what Let’s Talk Roundtable totally represents, is bringing leaders and their communities together so we can acknowledge every table in order to make sure that no one gets left out at the leadership level, so that no one gets left out at the individual and family level. ... We have to be able to identify all assets and all positives that we can really leverage in order to make the village and community concept come alive, make Detroit community again.”
James Craig
Age: 68
Where did you grow up?
Detroit’s westside.
Where do you live now?
Marina District on Detroit’s eastside.
What is your current occupation?
Retired.
Has anyone in your family ever run for office?
No.
What do you think is the most pressing issue facing Detroit, and what would you do about it as mayor?
“Of course, public safety is always a top issue among Detroiters. I’m happy that on my watch (as police chief) ... we did move crime in the right direction. But that work continues, and then the equity of neighborhoods in terms of ... are we giving the more vulnerable areas the same enforcement that we give to the more affluent? I would say yes. In fact, we would deploy more officers to areas that were higher in crime for obvious reasons. But the key is, you know, continuing to enhance our relationships with the community.”
Fred Durhal III
Age: 41
Where did you grow up?
Detroit’s eastside and westside.
Where do you live now?
Detroit’s westside.
What is your current occupation?
City Councilmember for District 7.
Has anyone in your family ever run for office?
Durhal’s father is a former state lawmaker.
What do you think is the most pressing issue facing Detroit, and what would you do about it as mayor?
“I would say property taxes, which leads to the wealth gap. We have some of the highest property taxes in the state. Right now, our property tax millage is over 80 mills. The closest city in comparison of population is Grand Rapids, and they’re a little bit over 40 mills. So when you look at the disparity that exists between even surrounding municipalities ... our residents are paying the highest amount of property taxes.”
Editor’s note: Detroit’s total millage for primary residences is about 67 mills. Its nonhomestead property tax millage is about 85 mills.
“So that leads a little bit to housing instability. Folks have difficulty paying their mortgages, you know, and even housing is another component of that. Folks have difficulty paying their rent and having a level of affordability. So I think that’s one of the most pressing issues of Detroiters right now, aside from public safety.”
Joel Haashiim
Age: 75
Where did you grow up?
Detroit’s eastside.
Where do you live now?
Northwest Detroit.
What is your current occupation?
Entrepreneur and wholesale distributor.
Has anyone in your family ever run for office?
No.
What do you think is the most pressing issue facing Detroit, and what would you do about it as mayor?
“We have the threat of our schools being defunded. Our children and our grandchildren are going to be highly affected. Our quality of life for our senior citizens have went down. Homelessness is a big issue. People being hungry is a big issue. We also have a situation where we have a large 43% (child) poverty rate.”
Editor’s note: See the census data for more insight.
“Safety is a big issue. ... We have mental health issues here in the city of Detroit. ... Transportation’s a big issue here in the city of Detroit. It has taken 12, 13 years for them to even begin to put additional resources here for transportation. You cannot be an international city if you do not have a viable transit system. ...
“And so in order to change that, some leader must put down the foundation for economic empowerment for the residents of the city of Detroit. Just opening up a business is not what this is about. Yes, we must open up more businesses. Yes, we must have money circulating in the city, amongst the businesses in the city, but someone has to lay the foundation.”
Saunteel Jenkins
Age: 54
Where did you grow up?
Cody Rouge on Detroit’s westside.
Where do you live now?
Elmwood Park on Detroit’s eastside.
What is your current occupation?
Campaigning for mayor. Jenkins resigned in January from The Heat and Warmth Fund.
Has anyone in your family ever run for office?
No.
What do you think is the most pressing issue facing Detroit, and what would you do about it as mayor?
“The most pressing issue that our next mayor has to look at is our finances because we have to ensure that we remain fiscally strong. Even without a lot of the resources that we currently have, like (American Rescue Plan Act) dollars, like Grand Bargain dollars ... none of those things will be in place for the next mayor.”
Editor’s note: The Grand Bargain refers to the city’s 2014 plan to recover from bankruptcy.
“There are two issues that the majority of Detroiters will say are the most pressing issues. One is safety. ... You can’t, in a healthy and productive way, focus on any of your other needs until you feel safe and secure. So that’s a pressing issue. Although crime has gone down, in every neighborhood that I’ve been to, safety is one of the things that I’ve heard people talk about. And then the other one is neighborhoods. ... It includes safety, it includes planning. It includes investments in neighborhoods and how we prioritize our dollars to make sure that neighborhoods can be safe, vibrant, thriving, and that they’re affordable for everybody.”
Solomon Kinloch
Age: 51
Where did you grow up?
Detroit’s westside.
Where do you live now?
Downtown.
What is your current occupation?
Senior pastor at Triumph Church.
Has anyone in your family ever run for office?
Kinloch’s brother Jonathan Kinloch is a Wayne County commissioner.
What do you think is the most pressing issue facing Detroit, and what would you do about it as mayor?
“I believe that the pressing issue is housing, but ... we have to have an overall vision in order to deal with poverty. We have to admit that we have a tremendous foundation in the City of Detroit, fiscally ... that we have not had in a long time. But one of the things that we want to continue to do is, now that we have this foundation, is build it in a way that everyone in this city feels that they are part of it, and (that) it’s not just taking place in one part of the city, but that change has reached the entirety of the city.”
Todd Perkins
Age: 55
Where did you grow up?
North End on Detroit’s westside.
Where do you live now?
North End, in the same house his grandfather bought in the 1940s.
What is your current occupation?
Litigator and city attorney for Inkster. He also is a founder of local nonprofit The People’s Voice.
Has anyone in your family ever run for office?
Perkins’ brother Sean Perkins is a 36th District Court judge.
What do you think is the most pressing issue facing Detroit, and what would you do about it as mayor?
“Public safety. It has to be, without a doubt. ... There’s so many other things that the citizens need, but first and foremost, our young people, our old people, our people like me, need to feel safe. And being safe and feeling safe can be two different things.
“I want people to feel safe, and you let me worry about the raw data and the numbers. But I want you to have a feeling that you can walk out of your house, you can go down the street to the store, creating an economic atmosphere in the neighborhoods. That’s another issue that’s down the continuum of priorities that need to happen. But public safety has to be at the forefront. We’ve made strides and we’ve made advances, but we can do so much more. And really the way that you do so much more is you engage the people.”
Mary Sheffield
Age: 37
Where did you grow up?
Sherwood Forest on Detroit’s westside.
Where do you live now?
Lafayette Park on Detroit’s eastside.
What is your current occupation?
City Council president.
Has anyone in your family ever run for office?
Sheffield’s father Horace Sheffield unsuccessfully ran for U.S. Congress.
What do you think is the most pressing issue facing Detroit, and what would you do about it as mayor?
“My mission is really to create a destination city, a city that is full of opportunity for all Detroit, one where our streets are safe — because public safety is a priority; secondly, where housing is affordable; third, where our neighborhoods are invested in, and we’re actually creating an environment in which people can actually raise families, not just play and work, but actually live in our communities.
“We also have to focus on our public transit and investing in creating accessible transportation for all, and then overall, improving the economic well-being of Detroiters by raising the incomes of our families in Detroit.”
DaNetta Simpson
Age: 53
Where did you grow up?
Detroit’s eastside.
Where do you live now?
Detroit’s eastside.
What is your current occupation?
Retired cosmetologist.
Has anyone in your family ever run for office?
No.
What do you think is the most pressing issue facing Detroit, and what would you do about it as mayor?
“It’s neighborhoods and crime. ... The neighborhoods I would develop in there, and I would secure insurance for the existing homes that are deteriorated. ... I will continue to do crime prevention like post no-gun laws into certain areas. I will ban certain areas where there’s large crowds and where there’s alcohol and tobacco uses. I will prohibit firearms from being in those zones.”
This story was updated to add videos of our interviews with each candidate. Solomon Kinloch declined our request for an on-camera interview.
This article first appeared on Outlier Media and is republished here under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
