DETROIT – As the August 5 primary elections draw near, voters across many Metro Detroit communities have begun casting absentee ballots to narrow down crowded fields of candidates in various local races. Seven cities are holding mayoral primaries to reduce the number of contenders to two finalists who will advance to the November general election.

Due to the number of candidates, several other communities are also holding primaries for City Council seats and other local offices, while some cities will decide the fate of tax referendums to fund improvements in education and public safety, including in Livonia and Novi.

Mayoral primaries

The seven cities holding mayoral primaries in August to narrow the field to two candidates each are:

• Detroit (nine candidates)

• Pontiac (seven candidates)

• Southfield (three candidates)

• Taylor (four candidates)

• Dearborn Heights (four candidates)

• Hamtramck (four candidates)

• New Baltimore (three candidates)

The primaries in Detroit, Dearborn Heights, Hamtramck and Pontiac are especially notable because the incumbent mayors in those cities are not seeking reelection.

• Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan is running for governor of Michigan in 2026.

• Dearborn Heights Mayor Bill Bazzi and Hamtramck Mayor Amer Ghalib have been nominated by President Trump to be U.S. ambassadors to Tunisia and Kuwait, respectively.

• Pontiac Mayor Tim Greimel is running for a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives in 2026.

City Council primaries will also take place on August 5 in the following cities or townships: Detroit, Taylor, Westland, Livonia, Plymouth (Wayne County), Pontiac (Oakland County) and Sterling Heights (Macomb County).

Other cities will not hold primaries due to a lower number of candidates. Under Michigan law, a primary is only required when the number of candidates exceeds twice the number of open seats. For example, in Dearborn, only two candidates are running for mayor and 13 candidates are competing for seven City Council seats — so all automatically advance to the November general election.

Hamtramck

Unlike Dearborn, Hamtramck has crowded races for both mayor and City Council.

• Mayoral Race: Four candidates are running to succeed Mayor Ghalib:

  • Adam Alharbi (Yemeni American)

  • Muhith Mahmood (current councilman, Bangladeshi American)

  • Khandaker Showkat Hossain (Bangladeshi American)

  • Mister Bangladesh (Bangladeshi who legally changed his first name)

• Only two will advance to the November runoff.

• City Council Race: 12 candidates are competing for three open seats on the six-member Council. The top six vote-getters in the August primary election will move on to the general election in November.

  Candidates include:

  • Abu Musa (incumbent)

  • Joseph Alan Strzalka

  • Diane Elizabeth Frkan

  • Rezaul Karim Chowdhury

  • Nayeem Leon Chowdhury

  • Motahar Abdo Fadhel

  • Yousuf Saed

  • Abdulmalik Yahya Kassim

  • Luqman Mohamed Saleh

  • Russ Gordon

  • Mahfuzur Rahman

  • Khalid Al Qsaimi

Dearborn Heights

In Dearborn Heights, four candidates are running for mayor:

• Mo Baydoun (City Council president)

• Denise Malinowski-Maxwell (Council member)

• Lina Arzouni (banking professional)

• Hussein Anani (activist and businessman)

Three candidates are Lebanese Americans, while one is of European descent.

Due to a limited number of candidates, there will be no primary races for the city clerk, treasurer or the four open City Council seats. All candidates for those positions will automatically advance to the November general election.

Ballot proposals and tax referendums

In other cities on August 5, voters will decide the fate of important tax proposals related to education and public safety:

• Novi residents will vote on a proposal to raise property taxes to fund $120 million in bonds to build a new police station and renovate fire stations.

• Livonia voters will decide on a similar $150 million bond measure.

Several school districts have also placed proposals on the ballot to fund infrastructure upgrades, technology improvements and school safety measures, including:

• Fitzgerald Public Schools (Warren)

• Romulus Schools

• Armada Schools

• Northville Schools

Early voting and absentee ballots

Absentee voting began earlier this month, and early in-person voting will run from July 26 to August 3 at designated early voting sites.

• Registered voters on the permanent absentee list automatically receive ballots by mail for each election.

• Other voters must request absentee ballots from their local city clerk.

Under Michigan election law, eligible residents can still register to vote in person up until 8 p.m. on Election Day (August 5) at their local clerk’s office.