City Council incumbents advance in Detroit primary
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All three City Council incumbents on the ballot Tuesday advanced to the November general election, per unofficial results by the city's Department of Elections.
The big picture: Although Council has nine members, only four races had enough candidates to warrant a contested primary.
Zoom in: The winning candidates emerged around midnight, with 99% of voting precincts counted.
- The top two vote-getters will move on in the district races and the top four advance from the at-large race.
At-large
Incumbents Coleman A. Young II and Mary Waters cruised to victory with each getting 33% of the vote in a field of eight candidates. Former Council member Janee' Ayers (14%) and challenger James Harris (7%) rounded out the top four.
- Young and Waters both have a combination of experience and name recognition that will be hard to overcome.
District 2
Council member Angela Whitfield-Calloway (44%) and challenger Roy McCalister Jr. (30%) were victorious, setting up a rematch of their 2021 contest.
- McCalister is looking to reclaim his seat in the northwest district.
District 5
The crowded race for the open seat that represents a portion of downtown came down to the wire.
- Renata Miller led the way with 23%. Willie Burton, who sits on the Board of Police Commissioners, also advanced with 20% of the vote.
- Three other candidates got between 13% and 17%.
District 7
State Rep. Karen Whitsett (34%) and Denzel Anton McCampbell (33%) will face off in November.
- Whitsett has strong name recognition and McCampbell, a former staffer for U.S. Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Detroit), has money.
- The $90,000 he raised was the second-highest fundraising total among Council candidates, per the Detroit News.
Editor's note: This story has been updated to correct Rep. Karen Whitsett's last name.