The 2005 Detroit mayoral election took place on November 8, 2005, following a primary election on August 2, 2005. Incumbent Mayor

Kwame Kilpatrick Kwame Malik Kilpatrick (born June 8, 1970) is an American former politician who served as the 72nd mayor of Detroit from 2002 to 2008. A member of the Democratic Party, he previously represented the 9th district in the Michigan House of Repre ...

, who was first elected in

2001 The year's most prominent event was the September 11 attacks against the United States by al-Qaeda, which Casualties of the September 11 attacks, killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror. The United States led a Participan ...

, ran for re-election to a second term. He was challenged by a large field of candidates, including former Deputy Mayor

Freman Hendrix Freman Hendrix (born October 12, 1950) is an American politician from the state of Michigan. A Democrat, Hendrix served as deputy mayor for former Detroit mayor Dennis Archer from 1997 to 2001. He ran twice, unsuccessfully, as a mayoral candidate ...

, City Councilwoman

Sharon McPhail Sharon McPhail is an American attorney and politician who served on the Detroit City Council from 2002 until 2006. McPhail was a candidate for mayor in the 1993 and 2005 elections. She was formerly a lawyer in private practice, a division chief ...

, and State Senator

Hansen Clarke Hansen Hashim Clarke (born Molik Hashim, March 2, 1957) is an American politician and former U.S. Congressman. A Democrat, he was the U.S. representative for from 2011 to 2013. Prior to his election to Congress, he had been a member of the Michi ...

. As Kilpatrick ran for a second term, he faced opposition over the city's budget deficits and poor economy, as well as allegations that he used city resources to enrich himself and his family. Kilpatrick placed second in the primary election, winning 34 percent of the vote to Hendrix's 44 percent. In the general election, Kilpatrick narrowly defeated Hendrix, 53–47 percent, to win a second term. However, in 2008, Kilpatrick was indicted for obstruction of justice, and resigned later that year, triggering a special election in 2009.

Primary election

Candidates

, *

, former Deputy Mayor, former Chairman of the

Detroit Board of Education Detroit Public Schools Community District (DPSCD) is a school district that serves Detroit, Michigan, and high school students in Highland Park, Michigan. The district, which replaced the original Detroit Public Schools (DPS) in 2016, provides ...

, City Councilwoman, 1993 candidate for Mayor *

, State Senator * Sarella Johnson * Clayton V. Johnson * Angelo Scott Brown * Veronica Brown * Tania K. Walton * Stanley Michael Christmas * Roy Godwin * Clifford Brookins II

Results

General election

Campaign

In the general election, Hendrix attacked Kilpatrick over his alleged mismanagement of the city and his own personal scandals, and polling consistently showed him ahead. However, toward the end of October, polls showed the race tightening. Following the death of civil rights activist

Rosa Parks Rosa Louise McCauley Parks (February 4, 1913 – October 24, 2005) was an American civil rights activist. She is best known for her refusal to move from her seat on a Montgomery, Alabama, bus, in defiance of Jim Crow laws, which sparke ...

on October 24, 2005, Kilpatrick gave a eulogy at her funeral, which attracted significant media attention and "gave him free exposure" in the final days of the race.

Polling

Key *A – all adults *RV – registered voters *LV – likely voters *V – unclear

Results

References

{{2005 United States elections

Detroit Detroit ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Michigan, most populous city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated on the bank of the Detroit River across from Windsor, Ontario. It had a population of 639,111 at the 2020 United State ...

2005 2005 was designated as the International Year for Sport and Physical Education and the International Year of Microcredit. The beginning of 2005 also marked the end of the International Decade of the World's Indigenous Peoples, Internationa ...

mayoral election November 2005 in the United States