Detroit residents overwhelmingly voted for Democratic candidates across national and state races during Tuesday's election, as BridgeDetroit reported. The election results bring new representation to the United States House of Representatives alongside returning incumbents and new state legislators heading to Lansing.
In the race for Michigan's 13th Congressional District, lifelong Detroiter Donavan McKinney was elected to the U.S. House, returning Black representation to Detroit at the federal level for the first time since 2023. Unofficial city election results show McKinney won 113,713 votes, taking approximately 92% of the total to defeat Republican candidate T.P. Nykoriak. McKinney, a 34-year-old University of Michigan alumnus, currently represents Michigan's 11th House District through Jan. 1, 2027. He will assume his new federal seat on Jan. 3, 2027, replacing current representative Shri Thanedar, whom McKinney defeated in the primary election.
McKinney ran as a democratic socialist candidate focused on progressive priorities such as guaranteed affordable housing, criminal justice reform, reproductive freedom, and campaign finance reform. Census data shows District 13 is the second-poorest congressional district in the nation, with an estimated poverty rate exceeding 27%. Raised on Detroit's northeast side by his mother and grandmother, McKinney resides in the city with his wife, Shaunté, and two children. His election drew social media praise from labor union UAW International Union and progressive nonprofit Indivisible Guide. Michigan Democratic Party Chair Curtis Hertel also issued a statement highlighting McKinney's background as a state representative and labor organizer.
In Michigan's 12th Congressional District, incumbent Rashida Tlaib secured reelection to her fifth term in the U.S. House, which begins in 2027. Tlaib won nearly 93% of the vote, receiving 77,084 ballots against Republican candidate James D. Hooper. The Wayne State University alumna and democratic socialist has served in Congress since 2018 following her historic 2008 election as the first Muslim woman state legislator. During her federal tenure, Tlaib has advanced legislation such as the Unhoused Persons Bill of Rights and measures banning federal funding for surveillance tech. She sits on the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability and serves on the Get the Lead Out Caucus.
Changes are also coming to Detroit's delegation in the Michigan Senate, where four new representatives will take office in Jan. 2027. In District 1, attorney and organizer Justin Onwenu won 48,577 votes, taking 93.42% of the electorate. Onwenu previously served as Detroit's first Director of Small Business Affairs under former Mayor Mike Duggan starting in 2024 and currently serves in the role under Mayor Mary Sheffield. In District 2, Uncommitted movement co-founder Abbas Alawieh received 3,061 votes, representing 86.62% of ballots cast. District 3 elected author and consultant John Conyers III, son of former congressman John Conyers Jr., who received 68,097 votes for 93.07% of the total. In District 6, incumbent Mary Cavanagh won a second term with 73,771 votes, or over 96%. Cavanagh, daughter of former state politician Phil Cavanagh and granddaughter of former mayor Jerome Cavanagh, has served in the state Senate since 2023 after serving in the state House.
Detroit voters also selected 12 Democrats to represent local districts in the Michigan House of Representatives. In District 1, incumbent Tyrone Carter won reelection to a fifth term with 14,528 votes, or 91.26%. Incumbent Alabas Farhat retained his seat in District 3 with 2,350 votes, representing 88.95% of the total. In District 4, former educator Regina Ross took 27,130 votes for 95.79% of the electorate.
In District 5, construction worker, AmeriCorp alumna, and academic interventionist Candace Calloway—daughter of District 2 City Councilmember Angela Whitfield-Calloway—won with 23,503 votes, or 96.77%. Incumbent Tonya Myers Phillips won a second term in District 7 with 15,842 votes, taking 95.51%. Environmental justice advocate Chris Gilmer-Hill secured District 8 with 22,792 votes, or 94.53%. Former Detroit police commissioner Willie Burton won District 9 with 28,785 votes for 91.77%. In District 10, incumbent Veronica Paiz held her seat with 10,568 votes, representing 91.81%. District 11 elected Kimberly Fisher, who took 15,173 votes for 95.72% of the electorate.
