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1973 Detroit mayoral election
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1973 Detroit mayoral election
The 1973 Detroit mayoral election took place on November 5, 1973. It saw the election of Coleman Young as the first Black mayor of the city.
In the previous 1969, Detroit mayoral election, which saw a narrow victory by Roman Gribbs, runner-up Richard H. Austin was the first Black person to be a major candidate for mayor of Detroit.
On December 29, 1972, Mayor Gribbs announced that he would not seek reelection. The New York Times wrote that it was expected that the election to select his successor would mirror 1969's election, in that it would see a Black candidate and a White candidate in the general election. Among the Black individuals seen as potential contenders were Michigan state senator Coleman Young, Judge Edward Bell, Detroit Common Councilor Ernest Browne, Gribbs aide Walter Greene, and Wayne County Sheriff William Lucas. Liberal Detroit Common Council president Mel Ravitz was initially seen as the most prominent potential White candidate for mayor.
While Black voter registration had strongly lagged behind White voter registration in 1969, by 1973, the number of Black voters registered was much closer to the number of White voters registered. Previously, ahead of the September 10, 1969 primary, Black voter registration was estimated to be at 42%, compared to White voter registration, which was estimated to be at 58%.
1967 had seen the historic elections of Carl Stokes in the Cleveland mayoral election and Richard G. Hatcher in the Gary, Indiana, mayoral election, the first elections of Black people as mayors of cities over 100,000. In 1970, Newark, New Jersey, joined along as a city of over 100,000 to elect a Black mayor, when it elected Kenneth A. Gibson. Cincinnati joined along with its 1972 election of Ted Berry.
Detroit would not be the only United States city with a population over 100,000 to elect its first Black mayor in 1973. Earlier that year, Atlanta had elected Maynard Jackson and Los Angeles had elected Tom Bradley. The same day that Detroit elected Young, Raleigh, North Carolina, elected Clarence Lightner. Additionally, Dayton, Ohio, elected James H. McGee (who had previously been appointed mayor in 1970) outright to a full term that year. The preceding elections in Atlanta and Los Angeles were perhaps good omens for Young's chances in Detroit, as both city's had also seen strong, but unsuccessful, campaigns by Black candidates in 1969, prior to the successful campaigns by Black candidates in 1973.
In total, nineteen candidates ran. There were five major candidates. The remaining fourteen candidates were largely unknown.
The nonpartisan primary election was held on September 11, 1973.
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1973 Detroit mayoral election
The 1973 Detroit mayoral election took place on November 5, 1973. It saw the election of Coleman Young as the first Black mayor of the city.
In the previous 1969, Detroit mayoral election, which saw a narrow victory by Roman Gribbs, runner-up Richard H. Austin was the first Black person to be a major candidate for mayor of Detroit.
On December 29, 1972, Mayor Gribbs announced that he would not seek reelection. The New York Times wrote that it was expected that the election to select his successor would mirror 1969's election, in that it would see a Black candidate and a White candidate in the general election. Among the Black individuals seen as potential contenders were Michigan state senator Coleman Young, Judge Edward Bell, Detroit Common Councilor Ernest Browne, Gribbs aide Walter Greene, and Wayne County Sheriff William Lucas. Liberal Detroit Common Council president Mel Ravitz was initially seen as the most prominent potential White candidate for mayor.
While Black voter registration had strongly lagged behind White voter registration in 1969, by 1973, the number of Black voters registered was much closer to the number of White voters registered. Previously, ahead of the September 10, 1969 primary, Black voter registration was estimated to be at 42%, compared to White voter registration, which was estimated to be at 58%.
1967 had seen the historic elections of Carl Stokes in the Cleveland mayoral election and Richard G. Hatcher in the Gary, Indiana, mayoral election, the first elections of Black people as mayors of cities over 100,000. In 1970, Newark, New Jersey, joined along as a city of over 100,000 to elect a Black mayor, when it elected Kenneth A. Gibson. Cincinnati joined along with its 1972 election of Ted Berry.
Detroit would not be the only United States city with a population over 100,000 to elect its first Black mayor in 1973. Earlier that year, Atlanta had elected Maynard Jackson and Los Angeles had elected Tom Bradley. The same day that Detroit elected Young, Raleigh, North Carolina, elected Clarence Lightner. Additionally, Dayton, Ohio, elected James H. McGee (who had previously been appointed mayor in 1970) outright to a full term that year. The preceding elections in Atlanta and Los Angeles were perhaps good omens for Young's chances in Detroit, as both city's had also seen strong, but unsuccessful, campaigns by Black candidates in 1969, prior to the successful campaigns by Black candidates in 1973.
In total, nineteen candidates ran. There were five major candidates. The remaining fourteen candidates were largely unknown.
The nonpartisan primary election was held on September 11, 1973.
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