Great news out of Detroit. State Senator Hansen Clarke has won an upset victory in his overwhelmingly Democratic district. He is poised to become the next Asian American in Congress. Clarke attended the first APAP Detroit meeting last year. We;ll definitely think of ways we can help out his campaign.

Clarke upsets Cheeks Kilpatrick in key race; end

of a political dynasty?

 

By KATHLEEN GRAY

FREE PRESS STAFF WRITER

 

State Sen. Hansen Clarke staged a stunning upset victory Tuesday night over seven-term Congresswoman Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick.  With 53% of the overall district results in, Clarke had a

48%-39% lead over the incumbent, who was first elected to Congress in 1996.

 

A subdued crowd at Kilpatrick's election nightp arty at the Doubletree -Fort Shelby in downtown Detroit waited for the final numbers to roll in, hoping that absentee ballots in Detroit might reverse the trend.

 

"You don't start dancing," said Kilpatrick supporter Sharon McPhail, a former Detroit city

councilwoman. "You have to wait for the absentees."

 

At Clarke's party at the Centaur Bar in Detroit, the crowd cheered as Clarke greeted supporters.

He said the election was a reflection of the power of the people of Michigan.

 

"This was bigger than an opponent and not about the incumbent or a family," Clarke said. "For decades, people have run for office to serve themselves, their family and not the people of the city. You must be mindful that elected officials come and go but people, not politicians, always have the power."

 

A poll of 400 people done last month in the 13th Congressional District by EPIC/MRA showed that 44% of the people surveyed said they planned to vote for someone other than Kilpatrick because of the scandals surrounding her son - former Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick, who sits in jail on a probation violation on state felonies and is awaiting trial on federal charges of tax evasion and mail and tax fraud.

 

According to an analysis of 27 key precincts, done for the Free Press and WXYZ-TV (Channel 7), Clarke's message - that if voters really wanted to oust Kilpatrick, he was the most viable candidate to do it - resonated at the polls. He

far outdistanced the other four challengers in the race: Grosse Pointe Farms businessman John Broad, the Rev. Glenn Plummer and Stephen Hume of Detroit, and Vincent Brown of Garden City. None of them got more than 5% of the

vote.

 

Kilpatrick was beating Clarke by a slim margin in Detroit, but Clarke was leading 3-1 in the suburbs.

 

"This is the final curtain: the ending of the Kilpatrick dynasty," said Detroit political consultant Eric Foster of Foster, McCollum,White and Associates. "I don't think we've ever seen this epic of a total collapse. Voters swept out the whole family."

 

The vote spells the end of a 14-year congressional career for Kilpatrick, a Detroit Democrat who gained the support of key unions, religious leaders and powerful members of Congress.

 

But Clarke embarked on a 24-hour campaign binge on Monday and Tuesday, hitting the streets and precincts to convince anyone he could find that he was the best candidate. He won over Brenda Archie of River Rouge, who

cast her ballot for Clarke.

 

"He's a fresh newcomer. He uses a message of change, which sounds pretty familiar, but I think maybe he is that guy," she said.

 

But the congresswoman's substantial ground operation was apparent throughout the district Tuesday as volunteers hit the street, trolling for votes. Kilpatrick said during the weekend she knew she needed to remain diligent through the closing of the polls.

 

She had been in this position before. In 2008, as her son was giving up his office and pleading guilty to charges of perjury and obstruction of justice, Kilpatrick faced two challengers - state Sen. Martha Scott and former state Rep. Mary Waters - who almost beat her. But they split the anti-Kilpatrick vote and she was able to squeak through with 39% of the vote.

 

Detroiter Rhonda Peete said Tuesday she voted for Kilpatrick because of her record. Kilpatrick's son played no role in her decision. "The job she does stands for itself," Peete said.This year, Kilpatrick had a significant cash advantage. She raised more than $512,000 for the race, and had an infusion of more than $23,000 in last-minute donations from

Ambassador Bridge owner Manuel (Matty Moroun, his family and employees. Kilpatrick was able to blanket the airwaves in the last week with messages of thanks from supporters, including Detroit City Council President Charles Pugh and Detroit Medical Center President and CEO Mike Duggan.

 

Clarke raised $145,000, with most of it coming from his own pocket. He didn't have the resources for a TV campaign, but took his message directly to the streets, meeting with people in soup kitchens, churches and polling places.

 

It paid off, he told his supporters. "This is for the laid-off auto executive facing foreclosure, the single parent struggling all the time when others prosper, and the military vet who eats his meals out of a garbage dumpster," he said.

 

The winner will face Republican John Hauler of Grosse Pointe and Green Party candidate George Corsetti of Detroit in the overwhelmingly Democratic district.