Nine candidates are running in the nonpartisan primary for mayor of Detroit, Michigan, on August 5, 2025. Five lead in media attention: James Craig, Fred Durhal III, Saunteel Jenkins, Solomon Kinloch, and Mary Sheffield.

Bridge Detroit‘s Malachi Barrett wrote, “For the first time since he won the role 12 years ago, Mike Duggan will not be on the ballot for Detroit mayor. His term expires at the end of 2025, opening up a competitive contest to succeed him.” Though the position is nonpartisan, Duggan is an independent, formerly affiliated with the Democratic Party. The last Republican mayor left office in 1962.

Craig is the former chief of Detroit’s police department and ran for the Republican gubernatorial nomination for Michigan in 2022 and U.S. Senate in 2024. He is campaigning on public safety, saying that residents “want police and they want more police, but that certainly doesn’t mean that we need to exhaust the budget just for public safety. There has to be a balance.” Craig also says he wants a third party to audit the city’s finances, and said that if elected, he would “[b]ring in a firm that will not only report out on the health, but come back with recommendations.”

Durhal is a member of the Detroit City Council, a former Democratic state Representative, and a community liaison to the Michigan State Housing Development Authority. He is campaigning on his experience and says he is the only candidate in the race who has a “vast experience of being able to foster relationships and deliver here for the city of Detroit.” Durhal also says that he wants to reform property taxes, saying he would “modernize [property] assessments by transitioning toward income-based assessments… ensuring taxes are aligned with actual earning potential.”

Jenkins was president of the Detroit City Council from 2013 to 2014 and a nonprofit executive. She is campaigning on affordability, and her website says she will “make lowering property taxes and housing affordability a top priority. We’ll work with our partners to create more affordable housing options for renters and owners.” Jenkins is also campaigning to expand public transit, saying “[w]e should have a combination of traditional buses and shuttles that go shorter routes. You need transportation hubs around the city… that can fulfill the needs of people throughout the city.” Jenkins is affiliated with the Democratic Party.

Kinloch is the pastor of the Triumph Church. He is campaigning on his lack of political experience, and focused on his experience as a pastor: “It doesn’t matter how experienced you are if your experiences don’t change the experiences of the people in this city… When government didn’t show up and do their part, Solomon Kinloch and Triumph Church stood up.” Kinloch is also campaigning on building new grocery stores in the city, saying he “plan[ed] on building 10 strategically located grocery stores and ending the food desert in Detroit forever.” Kinloch is affiliated with the Democratic Party.

Sheffield is the president of the Detroit City Council. She is campaigning on developing less well-off neighborhoods, and her website said that further development has “to occur in neighborhoods, and resources must be made available to residents where they live, work, play and pray. Detroit cannot continue to be a tale of two cities.” Sheffield has also campaigned on using community policing, and said she is “very big on community violence intervention programs, and possibly creating an office of gun violence prevention in Detroit. Creating more ways to address the underlying social issues that breed crime in our community.” Sheffield is affiliated with the Democratic Party.

Deadline Detroit‘s Allan Lengel wrote, “It’s always tough to say just how influential political endorsements are. That being said, they’re still coveted and considered a prize worth working for.”

Most of the leading candidates have received endorsements from organizations with local and national reach:

• Four mayors of other Michigan cities, including those from Grand Rapids and Lansing, endorsed Durhall.
• The Detroit News‘ editorial board endorsed Jenkins, and the Michigan Chronicle‘s editorial board issued a co-endorsement of Jenkins and Sheffield.
• The United Auto Workers, the Black Slate, and the 13th Congressional District Democrats have endorsed Kinloch.
• The Service Employees International Union Michigan and the Detroit Free Press‘s editorial board endorsed Sheffield. The Michigan Chronicle‘s editorial board issued a co-endorsement of Sheffield and Jenkins.

While Craig has not received any public formal endorsements, individuals such as former Michigan House Speaker and 2026 gubernatorial candidate Tom Leonard (R) and 13th District GOP Chair Alexandria Taylor attended his launch event.

Jonathan Barlow, Joel Haashiim, Todd Perkins, and Danetta Simpson are also running.

Jonathan Barlow (Nonpartisan) completed Ballotpedia’s Candidate Connection survey. To read those survey responses, click here.

Detroit does not have term limits for the position of mayor. Mayors serve a four-year term.