For the first time in the city of Dearborn’s nearly 100-year history, there won’t be a primary election for city offices.
There is no need for the Aug. 5 primary election because there are not enough candidates running, Dearborn City Clerk George Darany said.
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“This is certainly a surprise,” said Darany. “Over the years, there have always been plenty of residents who would seek city office and require a primary ballot in each election.”
The races for mayor, city clerk and city council will be decided in the Nov. 4 general election.
Why won’t there be a primary election?
There would have needed to be more than two candidates for mayor, two for clerk and 14 for city council for a primary election to be held, according to Darany.
How many people are running for city races?
The following number of candidates are running for city offices and will be on the Nov. 4 ballot:
- Mayor: 2
- Clerk: 2
- City council: 13
A few more people than that had wanted to run, though.
Disqualified petitions
Four people had filed petitions to run for mayor, and 16 for city council, but two candidates for each were disqualified “due to insufficient petitions, charter or campaign finance qualifications,” according to Darany.
Additionally, a candidate withdrew from the city council race after filing their petition.
Deadlines
The deadline for filing documents to run for mayor, clerk or city council in Dearborn was Tuesday, April 22.
Withdrawals were allowed until Friday, April 25.
Recent city races
While the number of candidates has been trending downward recently, not having enough candidates for a primary election came as a surprise to the clerk.
Darany said more than 20 people ran for a seat on the city council in 2013 and 2009.
There were seven candidates for mayor in the 2021 primary election, and five in 2017 and 2013.