Mary Sheffield Elected as Detroit's First Female Mayor

Wed Nov 05 2025 08:29:19 GMT+0200 (Eastern European Standard Time)

Mary Sheffield, the City Council President, wins the Detroit mayoral election, making history as the city's first female leader. She plans to focus on education and neighborhood improvements.

Mary Sheffield has been elected as Detroit's first female mayor, defeating Rev. Solomon Kinloch in a recent election. Sheffield, who has served on the City Council since 2013 and as president since 2022, will take office in January, succeeding three-term mayor Mike Duggan. She aims to enhance education and public safety in the city, building upon the progress achieved under Duggan’s leadership. The election reflects a call for broader investment across all neighborhoods in Detroit.

DETROIT (AP) — City Council President Mary Sheffield will become Detroit's newest mayor, marking a historic milestone as the first woman to lead the city.

Sheffield secured her victory over popular megachurch pastor, Rev. Solomon Kinloch, in Tuesday’s general election. Her inauguration will take place in January, succeeding three-term Mayor Mike Duggan, who announced he would not seek reelection amidst his campaign for Michigan governor as an independent.

Upon taking office, Sheffield will step into a city demonstrating significant improvements since its exit from the largest municipal bankruptcy in U.S. history in 2014. Under Duggan’s administration, which began in 2014, Detroit has seen enhancement in city services, indicated by reduced police response times, improved public lighting, and successful blight elimination efforts.

The city has enjoyed balanced budgets for 12 consecutive years and reported historically low violent crime rates. Earlier this year, U.S. Census data estimated a population increase to 645,705, reflecting growth following years of decline.

Sheffield and Kinloch, both members of the Democratic Party, arose from Detroit's non-partisan August primary, with Sheffield receiving nearly 51% of that vote to Kinloch's 17%.

Having first been elected to the City Council in 2013 at just 26, and serving as council president since 2022, Sheffield has a well-established political pedigree. Her father, Horace Sheffield III, is a noted activist and pastor.

Duggan strongly endorsed Sheffield, describing her as the most qualified person, the best prepared to be the next mayor. Sheffield has expressed her dedication to continuing the progress in Detroit, emphasizing improvements in education for the city's children and enhancing public safety.

“My commitment, Detroit, is to expand opportunities, strengthen our neighborhoods, and ensure that Detroit's progress touches every block and family in our city,” Sheffield noted during her campaign.

Following his concession, Kinloch reiterated the need for balanced investments across all areas of the city, stating, You can’t make all of the investments downtown. It has to reach the whole town. He underscored the necessity for community involvement in addressing issues such as affordable housing and crime.