Ballots are counted and the celebratory champagne has gone flat as Detroit woke up Wednesday to a clear two-way race for mayor in November: Council President Mary Sheffield vs. Rev. Solomon Kinloch Jr. 

Detroit voters also selected four finalists who will compete for two at-large seats on the City Council and picked candidates who will face off for three other council seats. Here are four takeaways as BridgeDetroit digs into the results:

SHEFFIELD’S MARGIN LARGER THAN EXPECTED 

Unofficial election night results show Sheffield with 51% of the vote, capturing 43,572 votes out of 85,971 cast. She had nearly three times as many votes as runner-up Rev. Solomon Kinloch Jr. and pulled more than a majority of the votes in a race with nine candidates. 

Sheffield had a 33-point lead over Kinloch. The Triumph Church leader received 17% of the vote, collecting 14,893 votes total. Sources within rival campaigns expected Sheffield to have a double-digit lead over the second-place finisher, but the margin was wider than informal predictions shared with BridgeDetroit before the count. 

The results show 42,399 people voted for someone other than Sheffield. She made overtures to voters who didn’t support her in a Tuesday campaign night victory speech.

“I say to every Detroiter that is watching tonight, whether you voted for me or not, I am here to serve you, to fight for you, to listen to you,” Sheffield said. “No matter our background, our language, our zip code, one thing is very clear: We are one Detroit. We may come from different walks of life, but at the end of the day, we all want the same things: safe neighborhoods, affordable homes, good paying jobs and a future that we all can believe in.” 

Kinloch said his campaign is building a movement in the neighborhoods that has “rankled the seats of power” by criticizing the status quo. He said the mayor is a moral leader serving residents, not a “manager of downtown development.”

“If we want a city that shines, we cannot ignore what’s in the shadows,” Kinloch said. “If we want Detroit to rise, we cannot celebrate billions in investment Downtown, but police poverty in the neighborhoods. If we want a true renaissance, we need a reconciliation.” 

Kinloch said longtime residents who stayed in hard times deserve action instead of “press conferences and Instagram posts.” The social media remark hewed close to a shot Jenkins took at Sheffield during a mayoral debate.

While opponents jabbed Sheffield for her social media presence, her campaign used Instagram and TikTok to reach younger voters. Sheffield was brought onstage at her watch party by Detroit comedian and news influencer Tay Crispyy, who previously went live on Instagram with Sheffield to knock on doors before the election. 

Sheffield secured first place by a margin of 28,679 votes while the gap between Kinloch and Jenkins was much closer. Jenkins trailed by 1,161 votes.

There was another steep drop between the top three and the rest of the field. Jenkins had 16% of the vote, while Attorney Todd Perkins and former Police Chief James Craig had 5% each.

Sheffield had more votes than her opponents combined. Kinloch and Jenkins together had more votes than everyone who finished behind them.

TURNOUT REMAINS LOW 

The city reported 85,971 votes cast in the mayoral primary, resulting in a turnout rate slightly under 17%. 

Lagging turnout has been a long-running frustration for elected officials and political observers, but there is a silver lining: the rate and number of votes was higher compared to the last municipal election in 2021. 

The turnout rate for the 2021 primary was 14%. Data from the Detroit Elections Department shows there were 14,899 more voters who participated in the Tuesday primary. However, there were also nearly 20,455 more voters registered. 

Turnout is expected to slightly increase in the general election. Roughly 19% of voters participated in 2021, with 93,540 voters recorded. 

Data collected by the Detroit Free Press shows turnout has fallen dramatically since reaching a high of 41% in 2005. 

Sheffield said the projected turnout rate for Tuesday’s primary was “pretty normal” for Detroit, but still too low. 

“It’s a lot of people whose voices are being left unheard,” Sheffield said.

Perkins placed some blame on the City Clerk Janice Winfrey, who is not facing a primary challenger as she seeks a sixth term. 

“I’ve sued her so many times, she doesn’t care for me,” Perkins said. “Don’t get me wrong, all elected officials should be (working to boost turnout), but the clerk’s job is the vote. If you get a turnout of 20% or 15% you’re not doing your job.” 

Mayoral candidate and Council Member Fred Durhal III said turnout in Detroit has traditionally been “abysmal.” He said responsibility for improving voter participation lies with the clerk’s office but also requires engagement from elected officials and robust local media coverage. 

“Not even a quarter of the electorate are participating,” Durhal said. “We may call it normal, but to me, there’s nothing normal about having a small percentage of the electorate decide who is going to lead the largest city in our state.”

Durhal said higher-turnout elections are about issues. While the mayoral race has been about property tax reform, transportation, public safety and other issues, Durhal said there could have been more voter education before Election Day. 

“We want to get to a place where we’re engaging people year-round,” Durhal said. “Many times at the council table, we hear folks come down and talk about accountability. This is the biggest mechanism for accountability. It also should be said that folks who put false narratives about the voting process don’t help the apathy.” 

TODD PERKINS OVERPERFORMS 

More Detroit voters picked an attorney who’s battled in court against the Detroit Police Department than its former chief law enforcement officer. 

Todd Perkins finished 144 votes ahead of James Craig, earning 5.3% of the overall vote reported by the Detroit Election Department. Polling predicted Perkins would finish behind Craig and Durhal and out of the top five. Instead, the attorney finished fourth.

Craig, who ran as a Republican and said he would work with President Donald Trump, didn’t have much of a ground operation compared to his opponents but enjoyed high name recognition. Perkins’ campaign spent nearly ten times as much, focused on engaging non-traditional voters and had a presence at polling locations visited by BridgeDetroit on Election Day. 

Perkins said he was the only candidate to have Spanish-language campaign signs and tried to engage new voters in Bengali and Yemeni communities bordering Hamtramck. 

Campaign finance disclosures show Perkins raised $230,126 while Craig raised $23,060 for his campaign. Craig’s largest donation came from former Michigan Republican Party Chair Ronald Weiser, and 1% came from Detroit residents. 

Durhal raised slightly more than Perkins ($253,056) but finished sixth with 3% of the vote. Perkins had 1,695 more votes than the council member. 

Perkins launched his campaign from Considine Little Rock Family Life Center in the North End. He was there, talking to voters in the parking lot, as polls closed Tuesday. 

Blair Anderson, an original Black Panther, wanted to know whether Perkins will work with the other candidates to move the city forward once the votes are counted. 

“What you gonna do with Mary? What you gonna do with Solomon? These are geniuses. These are power brokers,” Anderson said. “I say to all of the candidates, if you are going to move Detroit forward, you can’t be arguing at the end after this election.” 

Perkins agreed it’s important for candidates to collaborate once the dust settles. He said they’ve largely got along on the campaign trail, but singled out Sheffield for being less “inviting” to her opponents. 

Perkins said leadership goes beyond an individual candidate. He hopes his impact on the race will drive a movement to ensure all residents are included in the city’s future. 

“I’m an outside thinker, because what’s been working so far has not been working,” Perkins said. “It’s only been working for a smaller portion of the population.”

COUNCIL INCUMBENTS HOLD STRONG

It was a good day for the few incumbent council members who faced primary challenges. 

At-Large Council Members Mary Waters and Coleman Young II sailed through the primary, each collecting over 32% of the vote. 

Detroiters picked four candidates who will run for two at-large seats in the November general election. Former City Council member Janeé Ayers finished third with 14% of the vote and Detroit Fire Department Community Relations Chief James Harris finished fourth with 7%. 

District 2 Council Member Angela Whitfield-Calloway finished first in her three-way primary with 45% of the vote.

Former Council Member Roy McCalister Jr., who was unseated by Whitfield-Calloway in 2021, finished second with 30% of the vote. State Rep. Helena Scott, D-Detroit, finished third with 26%. 

Renata Miller and Willie Burton advanced in the District 5 primary to replace Sheffield as she seeks the mayor’s office. Denzel McCampbell and Karen Whitsett will face off in the District 7 primary to fill a seat vacated by Durhal. 

The rest of the council didn’t face primary challengers.

Two other council districts will have races in November. District 3 Council Member Scott Benson will seek to defend his seat against Cranstana Anderson while District 6 Council Member Gabriela Santaigo-Romero faces a challenge from State Rep. Tyrone Carter, D-Detroit. 

District 1 Council Member James Tate Jr. and District 4 Council Member Latisha Johnson have no opposition in the general election.