6 days ago
Political expert says Detroit mayoral race will be decided by senior voters
The Brief
A large pool of Detroit candidates for mayor will be whittled down to the top two in tomorrow's primary.
Issues like blight, crime and education are on the forefront of Detroit residents who spoke to FOX 2.
Political consultant Adolph Mongo says senior citizens will be the ones to decide the election.
DETROIT (FOX 2) - With less than 24 hours before the polls open for Tuesday's Primary, Detroit voters will ultimately decide what top two names will appear on the ballot for the mayoral race in the November election.
Many say that they know exactly what they want in the city's next leader.
"Someone to help finish what the other mayor was doing, it seems to be working," said Travis Cook, Detroit voter.
The backstory
Last year Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan announced he would not seek a fourth term as mayor leaving the door open for a new leader in the city.
Cook admits he hasn't decided who to support out of the long list of candidates, one that includes a religious leader, former police chief and former and current Detroit City Council members.
"There's a lot of work here. You definitely have your work cut out for you," he said.
FOX 2 caught up with a lifelong Detroiter who made her voice heard in early voting.
She won't reveal who got her support but she has a number of issues she wants the next mayor to tackle including crime among youth.
"Stop all these children dying, it's ridiculous," said Angela Gamlin.
Political consultant Adolph Mongo agrees.
"Crime. If we don't see it, its smacking us in the face," he said. "We got all these kids getting shot everyday."
Speaking of youth, many want education and the city's school system to be a key priority.
"A lot of the tax base is coming back in many ways, but I feel like the school is more than anything have taken a hit and that's what we need to build a community back," said Christopher Gruse.
Voters are also concerned with blight, the local economy, and job creation in the city.
Mongo says the new mayor will have a full plate of issues to deal with.
"We don't need on the job training from anybody," he said. "If they don't have the experience, I don't know why they ran."
He also predicts that the most prominent voice in this election will be from the senior citizens.
"Social security will decide the election not social media," Mongo said. "That means the senior citizens. Those are the ones who go vote all the time and they do it all the time. These young people they own social media, but when it comes time to mark the ballot, you can't find them."
The Source
Information for this report came from speaking with voters and political insider Adolph the daily Crossword
